Mission Statement
he Children’s Defense Fund Leave No Child Behind® mission is to ensure every child a
Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start and a Moral Start in life and successful
passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities.

T

CDF provides a strong, effective and independent voice for all the children of America who cannot
vote, lobby or speak for themselves. We pay particular attention to the needs of poor and minority
children and those with disabilities. CDF educates the nation about the needs of children and
encourages preventive investments before they get sick, drop out of school, get into trouble or
suffer family breakdown.
CDF began in 1973 and is a private, nonprofit public charity supported by foundation and
corporate grants and individual donations.

Foreword
“Ana’s love for singing was evident before she was even able to talk. In a musical
family, her gift for melody, pitch, and rhythm stood out remarkably. And she
never walked anywhere—her mode of transportation was dance. She danced
from room to room and place to place. She danced to all the music she heard,
whether in air or in her head. Ana loved her God, loved to read the Bible, and
loved to sing and dance as acts of worship.”
These are the words six-year-old Ana Grace Marquez-Greene’s parents released in a statement
after she was killed by gun violence on December 14, 2012 in the massacre at Sandy Hook
Elementary School. Ana’s father and mother are co-founders of the Sandy Hook Promise and
have been standing up and speaking out for common sense gun safety laws ever since. Despite
their courage and the courage of countless other families who lost children and loved ones to
gun violence, Congress has done nothing to protect children instead of guns. Nothing.
Did you know that every 30 minutes a child or teen dies or is injured from a gun? Every 30 minutes.
As this report documents with the most recent data available, the toll of this gun violence
epidemic is devastating. In 2010, 18,270 children and teens died or were injured from guns,
17 classrooms of 20 children every week. Children and teens in America are 17 times more
likely to die from gun violence than their peers in other high-income countries. Is this what
we mean by American exceptionalism? We can do better. We must do better.
This report provides a roadmap of where we are today and the actions we must take to protect
all children and make America safer. It reports on gun deaths and injuries. All children have a
right to live and to dream and to strive for a future that is not destroyed in a second because
we cowered before a special interest lobby and refused to protect them. Learn the truth about
gun safety and the misinformation the National Rifle Association spreads. Learn about the
economic cost of gun violence, a state-by-state breakdown on gun deaths among children and
teens, and good and bad state actions on gun violence prevention. Learn what you need to
know so all of us can do better.
What can you do? Urge your members of Congress to protect children from gun violence by
supporting common sense gun safety and gun violence prevention measures for the nation
including universal background checks, limits on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition
magazines, consumer safety standards for all guns, public funding for gun violence prevention
research, and resources and authority for law enforcement agencies to properly enforce gun
laws. Parents, remove guns from your home and be vigilant about where your children play.
Boycott products that glamorize violence.

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Children’s Defense Fund

Foreword
Since 20 first and second graders were mowed down with an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle in December,
more than 1,300 children and teens have been killed if 2010 trends continue. It’s time for every
parent, grandparent, faith and community leader to stand up to Congress and say, “Enough—do
something now!”
The overwhelming majority of Americans agree we can and must do better. Polls show the vast
majority of Americans, gun owners and non-gun owners, Republicans and Democrats support universal
background checks as a first step to making America safer for our children and for all of us. Use
this report to find the latest research and actions you can take to protect children, not guns, in your
home, in your community, and as a citizen to help create a better, safer America for all children.
Together we can—and must—do better right now. So many child lives depend on it.

Marian Wright Edelman

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Guns killed more preschoolers in one year than they did law enforcement officers in the line
of duty. Ask yourself if this is really what we as Americans mean by putting our children first?

n

American companies manufacture enough bullets each year to fire 31 rounds into every one
of our citizens. How many more mass-murders will it take to get Congress to pass sensible
gun regulation?

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America’s military and law enforcement agencies have four million guns. Our citizens have
310 million. Has this made our children safer?

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The number of children and teens killed by guns in 2010 was nearly five times the number
of U.S. soldiers killed in action that year in Iraq and Afghanistan. Shouldn’t our legislators be
as concerned about the wars at home as they are about the wars overseas?

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The number of children and teens killed by guns in one year would fill 134 classrooms of 20
students each. Too many children and teens are still being killed and injured by gun violence.
Isn’t it time to demand more common sense ways to protect them?
— From the “We Can Do Better” Campaign, created for CDF by Fallon Worldwide

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

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Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

Overview
2,694 children and teens died from guns in the United States in 2010.
The Children’s Defense Fund’s publication, Protect Children, Not Guns 2013, analyzes the latest fatal
and nonfatal gun injury data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for children and
teens ages 0-19.

The U.S. has as many guns as people.
n
n
n

The U.S. accounts for less than 5 percent of the global population, but owns an estimated
35 to 50 percent of all civilian-owned guns in the world.
The most recent estimate of U.S. civilian gun ownership is as high as 310 million, about one
gun per person. In contrast, U.S. military and law enforcement agencies possess 4 million guns.
American companies manufacture enough bullets each year to fire 31 rounds into every one of
our citizens.

A gun in the home increases the risk of homicide, suicide and accidental death.
n

n

A gun in the home makes the likelihood of homicide three times higher, suicide three to five
times higher, and accidental death four times higher. For every time a gun in the home injures
or kills in self-defense, there are 11 completed and attempted gun suicides, seven criminal
assaults and homicides with a gun, and four unintentional shooting deaths or injuries.
More than half of youth who committed suicide with a gun obtained the gun from their home,
usually a parent’s gun.

U.S. children and teens are 17 times more likely to die from a gun than their peers in 25
other high-income countries combined.
n
n

n

U.S. children and teens made up 43 percent of all children and teens in these 26 countries
but were 93 percent of all children and teens killed by guns.
In 2010, children and teen gun death rates in the U.S. were over four times higher than in
Canada, the country with the next highest rate, nearly seven times higher than in Israel, and
nearly 65 times higher than in the United Kingdom.
U.S. children and teens were 32 times more likely to die from a gun homicide and 10 times
more likely to die from a gun suicide or a gun accident than all their peers in the other
high-income countries combined.

A child or teen dies or is injured from guns every 30 minutes.
n

18,270 children and teens died or were injured from guns in 2010.
• 1 child or teen died or was injured every 30 minutes.
• 50 children and teens died or were injured every day.
• 351 children and teens died or were injured every week.

More children and teens die from guns every three days than died in the Newtown massacre.
n

n

2,694 children and teens died from guns in 2010.
• 1 child or teen died every 3 hours and 15 minutes.
• 7 children and teens died every day, more than 20 every three days.
• 51 children and teens died every week.
The children and teens who died from guns in 2010 would fill 134 classrooms of 20 children.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

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Overview
Guns are the second leading cause of death among children and teens ages 1-19 and the
number one cause among Black children and teens.
n
n

n

Only motor vehicle accidents kill more children and teens every year.
White and Asian/Pacific Islander children and teens were nearly three times more likely,
American Indian/Alaska Native children and teens more than two times as likely, and
Hispanic children and teens one-and-a-half times more likely to be killed in a car accident
than by a gun.
In contrast, Black children and teens were twice as likely to be killed by a gun than to be killed
in a car accident.

Although total gun deaths dropped in 2010 for the fourth consecutive year, gun death rates
remained higher than in the early 1960s.
n
n

n

In 2010, the rate of gun deaths in children and teens was 30 percent higher than in 1963,
when data were first collected from all states.
While Black children and teens have experienced the highest rates of gun deaths, the largest
number of deaths has been among White children and teens. Out of the estimated 166,600
children and teens who have died from guns between 1963 and 2010, 53 percent were among
White children and teens, and 36 percent were among Black children and teens.
Between 1963 and 2010, 59,265 Black children and teens were killed by guns—more
than 17 times the recorded lynchings of Black people of all ages in the 86 years from 1882
to 1968.

Since 1963, three times more children and teens died from guns on American soil than U.S.
soldiers killed in action in wars abroad.
n

n

166,500 children and teens died from guns on American soil between 1963 and 2010, while
52,183 U.S. soldiers were killed in action in the Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq wars combined
during that same period.
On average 3,470 children and teens were killed by guns every year from 1963 to 2010, or
174 classrooms of 20 children every year.

Nearly three times more children and teens were injured by guns in 2010 than the number of
U.S. soldiers wounded in action that year in the war in Afghanistan.
n

An estimated 15,576 children and teens were injured by guns in 2010.
• 1 child or teen was injured every 34 minutes.
• 43 children and teens were injured every day.
• 300 children and teens were injured every week.
• 5,247 U.S. soldiers were injured in the war in Afghanistan in 2010.

Children and teens die from gun violence in all states.
n
n

6

Every state lost children to gun violence between 2000 and 2010. The number of deaths varied
from 15 in Hawaii to 4,668 in California.
The deadliest state was Alaska with 8.7 gun deaths for every 100,000 children and teens each
year, more than twice the nationwide rate of 3.6. Alaska was 21 times more deadly for children
and teens than Hawaii, the safest state.

Children’s Defense Fund

Overview
Guns kill more children under 5 than law enforcement officers in the line of duty.
n

82 children under 5 died from guns in 2010, compared to 55 law enforcement officers killed
by guns in the line of duty.

Children are more likely to be exposed to violence than adults.
n
n

The 2008 National Survey of Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Exposure to Violence found that nearly two-thirds of
children and youth had been victims or witnesses of violence within the past year.
Nearly 1 in 10 children and 1 in 5 14-17 year-olds had witnessed a shooting at some point in
their lives.

Black, Hispanic, American Indian and Alaska Native children and teens are disproportionately
more likely to die or be injured by guns.
n
n

n
n

In 2010, 45 percent of gun deaths and 46 percent of gun injuries were among Black children
and teens, although they comprised only 15 percent of all children and teens.
Black children and teens were 4.7 times more likely to die from guns than White children the
same age, and 8.5 times more likely to be injured. American Indian or Alaska Native children
and teens were 2.4 times more likely to die from guns, and Hispanic children were 3.3 times
|more likely to be injured from guns than White children and teens.
Black children and teens were 17 times more likely to die from a gun homicide than White
children the same age.
American Indian or Alaska Native children and teens had the highest rate of gun suicides,
nearly twice as high as White children and teens.

Homicide is the leading manner of gun death among children and teens and assault the
leading manner of gun injury.
n
n
n

Children and teen gun deaths were most likely to be homicides; adult gun deaths were most
likely to be suicides.
Two out of three child and teen gun deaths were homicides; a little over one out of four were
suicides.
Among nonfatal gun injuries, a little over three out of four resulted from assaults while nearly
one out of five was accidental.

Older teenagers are most at risk from gun violence, Black male teens are most at risk.
n
n

Eighty-six percent of gun deaths and 89 percent of gun injuries in 2010 occurred in 15-19
year-olds.
Black males ages 15-19 were nearly 30 times more likely to die in a gun homicide than White
males and more than three times more likely to die in a gun homicide than Hispanic males of
the same age.

Total gun deaths and injuries in 2010 cost the U.S. $174.1 billion, or 1.15 percent of our
gross domestic product.
n

The 105,177 gun deaths and injuries to children, teens and adults that occurred in 2010 cost
the nation $8.4 billion in medical and other direct costs, $52.5 billion in lost productivity
and lost wages, and $113.3 billion in lost enjoyment of life.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

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Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

Stand Up and Take Action
1. Urge your members of Congress to protect children from gun violence. Support common
sense gun safety and gun violence prevention measures for the nation including:
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Better preventive and therapeutic services for children and families facing violence in their
homes and communities and for children with unmet mental health needs;

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Adequate funding for gun violence prevention research and programs; and

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Resources and authority for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
(ATF) and law enforcement agencies to properly enforce gun laws.

2. Urge state and local governments to protect children from guns. Urge your state legislators
and local officials to:
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Support laws to prevent child access to guns including childproofing and keeping all guns
secured from unsupervised children;

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Support universal background checks;

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Support limits on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines; and

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Oppose efforts to limit the ability of schools, physicians and others to warn parents and
students about the dangers of guns.

3. Parents, remove guns from your home and be vigilant about where your children play.
4. Boycott businesses and products that glamorize and normalize violence.
5. Bring attention to the number of children killed and injured by gun violence and the truth
about guns.
6. Offer parents, children and teens the resources, support and tools to survive and combat
the culture of violence.
For details, go to page 36

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

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The Truth About Guns
1. A gun in the home increases the risk of homicide, suicide and accidental death.
Contrary to what many people believe, having a gun in your home doesn’t make you safer but
instead endangers you and your loved ones. A gun in the home makes the likelihood of homicide
three times higher,1 suicide three to five times higher,2,3 and accidental death four times higher.4
For every time a gun in the home injures or kills in self-defense, there are 11 completed and
attempted gun suicides, seven criminal assaults and homicides with a gun, and four unintentional
shooting deaths or injuries.5

2. Many children live in homes with loaded and unlocked guns. Every parent and grandparent
needs to be careful where their children play and ask if there is a gun in the home.
One-third of all households with children younger than 18 have a gun and more than 40 percent of
gun-owning households with children store their guns unlocked.6 Twenty-two percent of children with
gun-owning parents handled guns in their homes without their parents’ knowledge.7 More than half of
youth who committed suicide with a gun obtained the gun from their home, usually a parent’s gun.8,9

Brandon Holt, a 6-year-old from Ocean County, New Jersey was shot in the head and killed
by his 4-year-old neighbor during a play date. The 4-year-old had gone into his home and
brought back a loaded .22 caliber rifle. He accidentally fired the gun from about 15 feet
away from his friend.1,2
Caroline Sparks, 2 years old was shot in the chest and killed accidentally by her 5-year-old
brother in Kentucky in May. The little boy had gotten the weapon, a .22 caliber Crickett
single-shot rifle marketed to children, for his birthday.3,4
Jodi Sandoval lost her 14-year-old son, Noah, to gun violence in Columbus, Ohio on July 5,
2012. A mindful parent, Jodi says, she kept a gun-free home. Her son was visiting a friend
who was fooling around with a gun. Although there was no magazine in the gun, unbeknownst
to the friend, there was a bullet in the chamber. Now Jodi is wracked with grief and guilt.5,6
*To hear Jodi tell her story visit CDF’s Faces of Courage webpage.

3. Guns make violence more deadly. Contrary to what the gun industry says, guns do kill people.
Guns make killing easy, efficient, and somewhat impersonal, thereby increasing the lethality of
anger and violence.10 An estimated 41 percent of gun-related homicides and 94 percent of
gun-related suicides would not occur if no guns were present.11 On the same day as the Newtown
massacre a man attacked children with a knife at an elementary school in China. Twenty-three
children were injured, but none died.12 In family and intimate assaults, the use of a gun increased
the risk of death 12 times.13

4. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is forbidden from regulating the sale
and manufacture of guns. A 1976 amendment to the Consumer Product Safety Act specifically
states that the Commission shall make no ruling or order that restricts the manufacture or sale of
guns, guns ammunition, or components of guns ammunition, including black powder or gun powder
for guns.14 As a result, the CPSC can regulate teddy bears and toy guns15 but not real guns,
despite the fact that they are one of the most lethal consumer products.
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Children’s Defense Fund

The Truth About Guns
5. Virtually anyone can buy a gun without a background check. Federal law requires that anyone
purchasing a gun from a federally-licensed dealer submit to a background check. But private sales,
like many sales at gun shows and increasingly on the internet, do not require it. This is a loophole
used by many people who could not pass a background check. In 2009, undercover stings at gun
shows in Nevada, Ohio and Tennessee revealed that 63 percent of private sellers sold guns to purchasers who stated that they would be unable to pass a background check.16 A 2011 study of internet gun sales found that 62 percent of sellers agreed to sell a gun to a buyer who said he probably
couldn’t pass a background check.17

6. The majority of Americans, including gun owners and NRA members, support common
sense gun safety regulations. Almost three-quarters of those in NRA households (74 percent)18
and more than four out of five gun owners (79 percent of Republican gun owners and 90 percent
of Democratic gun owners)19 believe that all potential gun buyers should be subject to a criminal
background check. Nearly two-thirds of Americans (65 percent) and half of gun owners (50 percent)
believe that allowing people to own assault weapons makes the country a more dangerous place.20
A majority of Americans want a ban on assault style weapons and oppose more teachers and school
officials having guns in schools.21

7. Common sense gun safety laws help reduce gun violence while protecting the legal use of
guns. The following gun safety laws have all been found to be effective in reducing gun violence.
None of these regulations prevent law-abiding citizens from owning guns.
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Requiring background checks for purchases through private sellers as well as licensed dealers.
Since the implementation in 1994 of the Brady Law, which instituted a federal background
check requirement for sales through federally-licensed dealers, 2.1 million firearm purchase
applications have been denied.22 A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical
Association Internal Medicine found that states with background checks on private sales had
16 percent lower gun fatality rates.23

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Firearm prohibitions for high-risk groups. A study in California found that denial of handgun
purchase to people who have committed violent misdemeanors was associated with a
decrease in risk of arrest for new gun and/or violent crimes.24

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Well-designed assault weapons ban. An Australian law banning semi-automatic and
pump-action rifles and shotguns and buying back banned weapons was associated with
decreased suicide and homicide rates and with the absence of any mass shootings in the
decade following the law (compared to 11 mass shootings in the prior decade).25

n

Child access prevention laws. Studies of child access prevention laws, which require gun
owners to store their guns so that children and teens cannot access them unsupervised, have
found these laws reduce accidental shootings of children by as much as 23 percent26 and
suicides of adolescents by 8 percent.27

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Tighter regulation and oversight of gun sellers. A study using crime gun trace data from
54 U.S. cities found that diversion of guns for use in crimes is much less common in states:
• that license retail gun sellers;
• that require careful record keeping that can be reviewed by law enforcement;
• that require potential gun buyers to apply for a license directly with a law
enforcement agency; and
• where law enforcement agencies conduct regular compliance inspections.28

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

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Nearly 2,000 people attended Molly Conley’s funeral to mourn the young humanitarian who had
become the victim of a random drive-by shooting the day after her 15th birthday. Though no one
else was injured, she was shot in the neck while walking with friends to a sleepover in a residential
neighborhood. Molly was a 4.0 student and is best known for her kindness, which she used to
encourage her parents to care for infants waiting for foster families and to start a group called
“Mother’s Helper” that raised money to aid victims of domestic abuse.7,8,9

Help spread the word through social media to #ProtectChildrenNotGuns.
Visit our website at childrensdefense.org/DoBetter to share the
powerful images and statistics in this report. Use the tool on the
website to overlay an image of your own child with the ‘Protect
Children, Not Guns’ message and share it with your friends on
Facebook. Visit CDF’s Facebook page photo albums to update your
timeline photo with the shocking statistics from this report.

www.facebook.com/ChildrensDefensedFund

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Children’s Defense Fund

www.twitter.com/ChildDefender

The Truth About Guns
8.

Common sense gun safety regulations protect lawful ownership and use of guns.
The 1994 Assault Weapons Ban that expired in 2004 protected the rights of gun owners by
exempting every shotgun and hunting rifle in use at the time.29 Senator Dianne Feinstein’s proposed
2013 legislation reinstating the ban specifically exempts over 2,000 sporting and hunting
weapons.30 Background checks do not prevent legal gun purchases.

9.

Universal background checks will not lead to a registry of gun owners. The Brady Law of
1994 explicitly bans the creation of a registry of gun owners.31 Under the law, instant criminal
background checks have been made on over 100 million gun sales in the last decade, without
leading to the formation of a gun registry.32 Likewise, the background check compromise proposed
by Senators Manchin and Toomey in early 2013 also explicitly banned the creation of a gun
registry and even imposed new serious criminal penalties (a felony with up to 15 years in prison)
on any person who misuses or illegally retains firearms records.

10. Loopholes in prior gun safety laws prevented them from being as effective as necessary.
The 1993 Brady Law required federal background checks for guns purchased from federally-licensed
retailers, but not for private sales.33 The 1994 assault weapons and high-capacity magazine ban
did not apply to weapons and magazines manufactured prior to the ban, allowed importation of
rifles that could accept large capacity magazines, and allowed the manufacture and sale of
“copy-cat” assault weapons with only small differences from banned models.34

11. Armed school guards and teachers will not necessarily make children safer but may
jeopardize the futures of some children. Armed guards or officers are in about one-third of
our nation’s public schools.35 Columbine High School had an armed guard,36 and Virginia Tech
had a full campus police force. There is no evidence that armed guards or police officers in
schools make children safer.37 Educators are strongly opposed to arming teachers. A National
Education Association poll of its membership found that 22 percent were in favor of arming
teachers, 68 percent were opposed and 61 percent were strongly opposed.38 While there isn’t
clear evidence that armed security guards or police officers keep children in schools safer, there
is very troubling evidence that their large presence on school grounds leads to the criminalization
of some children, especially Black and Latino males, at increasingly younger ages and the feeding
of children into the prison pipeline.39 Alternatives to armed guards include threat assessment
teams, positive behavioral interventions and supports, and restorative justice practices, which
have all shown to be effective in reducing violence, improving school safety, and maintaining a
positive school climate that allows teachers to teach and students to learn. 40,41,42

On January 11th, 2012 Caldwell County Sheriff’s deputies went to the home of the Curtis
family after receiving an emergency call: their 12-year-old son, Steven Curtis, had mishandled
a gun and accidentally shot himself in the head. Steven loved playing football and being
outside. He also spent a great deal of time hunting and as a result grew up learning about
gun safety; he even had a hunter’s safety certification from the Conservation Department.
In Breckenridge, Missouri—a town of just 450 people—hunting safety is an important part
of the middle school’s agricultural curriculum. Steven’s father didn’t know how his son got
the gun from a locked cabinet that was in their living room.10,11

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

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What the NRA Doesn’t Want You to Know
The National Rifle Association (NRA) has blocked federal funding for gun violence prevention research
since 1996, preventing us from knowing what works to prevent gun injuries and fatalities. In 1996,
alarmed by the potential impact of recent public health research indicating that guns in the home were
associated with higher rates of homicide and suicide, the NRA convinced lawmakers to prohibit the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from spending any funds to advocate or promote gun
control and to cut the agency’s funding by the exact amount that had been provided the previous year
to study the prevention of gun injuries and fatalities.1 Although the CDC had not been advocating or
promoting gun control, these changes had the effect of reducing by 95 percent the agency’s funding of
gun injury prevention research. In 2011, the NRA did the same thing for National Institutes of Health
funding. As a result, we now know far less than we need to about what works to prevent the more than
30,000 gun deaths and 70,000 gun injuries that occur every year. In the wake of the Newtown
tragedy, President Obama signed an executive order clarifying that the CDC and NIH are not prohibited
from studying gun violence and included $10 million in funding to study the prevention of gun injuries
and fatalities in his FY2014 budget request.
The NRA has actively prevented enforcement of current gun safety laws. While the NRA says they
support enforcing gun laws, the truth is the organization has done all it can to make it more difficult for
federal agencies and local law enforcement to hold criminal gun dealers and traffickers accountable.2
Working with its allies in Congress, the NRA has succeeded in:
• preventing law enforcement from using gun trace data—data linking crime guns to
the retailers that first sold them—in some legal proceedings;
• prohibiting the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) from
requiring dealers to keep inventories of their stock of weapons;
• banning ATF’s electronic storage of gun sales records, thereby preventing efficient
analysis of data to find suspicious patterns and identify the sources of crime guns;
• limiting the resources and operating flexibility of the ATF; and
• banning the disclosure of gun trace data to the public, including researchers.
As a result the ATF, which is responsible for ensuring guns are not sold to prohibited buyers, is unable
to efficiently and properly enforce gun laws, and local law enforcement entities face unnecessary
hurdles when trying to limit crime guns in their jurisdictions.
The NRA represents a small minority of gun owners. The NRA claims nearly five million members.3
Based on surveys showing somewhere between 22 4 and 29 5 percent of American adults owning guns,
there are an estimated 52 to 68 million gun owners in the country.6 This means that the NRA only
represents between 7 and 9 percent of American gun owners. This may explain why the NRA’s positions
are often at odds with those of the majority of gun owners.
The NRA’s position on universal background checks is out of sync with that of its members.
Polling data show that 85 percent of gun owners7 and 74 percent of NRA members support
universal background checks,8 a policy position that the NRA vehemently opposes and worked hard
to defeat in the Senate in April 2013. The NRA recently claimed that its members did not support
background checks.9 However, the evidence the NRA used to support this claim in fact referred to
completely different policies: the establishment of a national gun database, federal gun registration,
and a ban on the sale of guns between private citizens.10

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Children’s Defense Fund

What the NRA Doesn’t Want You to Know
The NRA flagrantly misrepresented the bipartisan Manchin-Toomey background check amendment that
came up for a vote in the Senate in April 2013. In May 1999 in testimony before the House Judiciary
Committee Subcommittee on Crime, Wayne LaPierre, Executive Vice President of the NRA said, “We
think it’s reasonable to provide mandatory instant criminal background checks for every sale at every
gun show. No loopholes anywhere for anyone.” Fourteen years later, in order to defeat a bipartisan bill
that would have instituted instant background checks for all sales at gun shows and on the internet, the
NRA resorted to distorting the facts and stoking crude fears by saying:
“This so-called universal background check that you’re hearing about is aimed at one thing: it’s
aimed at registering your guns and, when another tragic opportunity presents itself, that registry
will be used to confiscate your guns.”
—Wayne LaPierre, February, 2013
LaPierre continued to push this misinformation throughout the Senate debate. The truth is the
Manchin-Toomey compromise amendment explicitly banned the creation of a gun registry and created a
new penalty for misusing records to create a registry—a felony punishable by 15 years in prison. Sadly
these distortions were successful in defeating a bill that had the support of 90 percent of Americans
and a majority of the Senators.

The Nation’s Gun Violence Bill
A 2012 analysis by the Pacific Institute for
Research and Evaluation found that the 31,672
gun deaths and the 73,505 nonfatal gun injuries
in 2010 (among people of all ages) cost our country
$8.4 billion in medical and mental health care,
emergency services, and administrative and criminal
justice costs.1 In addition, those killed or injured
and their families and employers lost an estimated
$52.5 billion in forgone wages and productivity.
One-fifth of this combined $60.8 billion cost was
borne by local, state and federal governments. The
economic value of the pain, suffering, and loss of
enjoyment of life among those shot and their families
was valued at an additional $113.3 billion. The total
cost of $174.1 billion is a little over 1 percent of our
nation’s gross domestic product and an average of $1.7
million in one year for each individual shot. And even
this number is an underestimate. It does not count the
larger toll and economic impact of gun violence on
entire communities, including lower housing values and
lost property tax revenue.
1Miller, T. 2012. “The Cost of Gun Violence.” Pacific Institute for
Research and Evaluation. http://www.pire.org/more.asp?cms=963
<http://www.pire.org/more.asp?cms=963>. Calculations by Children’s Defense Fund.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

15

Progress Since the Newtown Massacre
The tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut on December 14, 2012 horrified the nation and spurred a
national debate about ways to protect children and communities from gun violence. New grassroots
organizations have sprung up to give voice to the majority of Americans who want stronger protections
from gun violence, and existing organizations have redoubled efforts. President Obama has begun
implementing a comprehensive national agenda to prevent gun violence, several states have passed
landmark new gun laws, and Congress voted on gun legislation for the first time since 2004. It remains
to be seen whether Congress will honor the will of the public and pass universal background checks
and other gun safety measures.

Our condolences to the families and community of Newtown,
and to the families and communities of the thousands
of children and teens killed by gun violence.

16

Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

Progress Since the Newtown Massacre
Shift in Public Opinion and Strong Public Support for Improved Gun Violence Prevention Laws
In a January 2013 Washington Post-ABC News poll, over half of respondents (52 percent) said they
were more likely to support “some forms of gun control” as a result of the Newtown shootings. Polls
tracking public opinion before and after the Newtown tragedy found an increase in support for stricter
gun safety laws after December 14, 2012.
At a time when Americans rarely agree on anything, an astounding 8 in 10 Americans support expanding
background checks to cover private sales, including on the internet and at gun shows.1 This includes
almost three-quarters of those in National Rifle Association (NRA) member households (74 percent)2
and more than four out of five gun owners (79 percent of Republican and 90 percent of Democratic gun
owners).3 A majority of Americans (56 percent) also support banning assault weapons and high-capacity
magazines.4 The American people want change.

President Obama Launched Plan to Reduce Gun Violence in America
The afternoon of the Newtown shooting, President Obama addressed the nation and promised to take
meaningful action to protect children and communities from gun violence. Within a week, Vice President
Joe Biden was appointed to lead an inter-agency gun taskforce that worked with outside organizations and
experts, victims of gun violence, gun advocates and government officials to develop policy recommendations
to reduce gun violence.
On January 16, 2013, President Obama released the Administration’s plan to reduce gun violence
through a list of executive orders and a call for legislative action based on the policy recommendations
put forth by the Biden taskforce.5 A number of the executive initiatives have been implemented.
The President’s plan focused on four common sense actions to address gun violence:
n

Closing Background Check Loopholes to Keep Guns Out of Dangerous Hands
In an effort to keep guns from those who would commit acts of violence, the Administration
proposed requiring background checks for all gun sales. The plan also strengthened the
National Instant Criminal Background Check System by removing barriers to and creating
incentives for the sharing of relevant state and federal data.

n

Banning Military-Style Assault Weapons and High-Capacity Magazines, and Taking Other
Common Sense Steps to Reduce Gun Violence
The President called for reinstating and strengthening the 1994 federal assault weapons ban
banning ammunitions magazines holding more than 10 rounds and armor-piercing bullets.
The President also called for increasing punishments for gun trafficking and improving law
enforcement’s capacity and authority to enforce gun laws and directed federal agencies to
resume gun violence prevention research.

n

Making Schools Safer
The President called for new and expanded resources and incentives for schools to invest in
school safety, through personnel including school resource officers, school psychologists,
social workers and counselors, and through school safety equipment, updated public safety
plans and training “crisis intervention teams” to respond to students in crisis.
Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

17

Progress Since the Newtown Massacre
n

Improving Mental Health Services
The President’s plan takes steps to identify mental health issues early on and help individuals
receive treatment. The Administration called on new initiatives to train teachers to detect and
respond to mental illness in students and to make sure students are referred to treatment.

On January 29, 2013 Hadiya Pendleton, a 15-year-old
majorette chosen to march in President Obama’s Inauguration
parade, was taking shelter from the rain under a canopy in a
public park with a group of friends when she was shot and
killed by a gun less than a mile from the President’s Chicago
home. As a sixth grader Hadiya had appeared in an anti-gang
video to encourage other young people to avoid gang violence,
saying, “It’s your job as students to say ‘no’ to gangs and ‘yes’
to a great future.” She could have meant a future like her own:
as a high school sophomore, she was an honors student at a
college preparatory school—doing everything right, with the world ahead of her. But all that
changed because of a gun. Hadiya was one of three deaths and eight injuries from guns that day
in Chicago.12,13,14

Groups to Reduce Gun Violence Formed Since the Newtown Tragedy
In the wake of the December 14, 2012 shooting, several new organizations dedicated to reducing gun
violence emerged at both the local and national level. Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America
(also known as Moms Demand Action; formerly One Million Moms for Gun Control) was created by an
Indiana mom. It now consists of nearly 100 local chapters and over 100,000 members throughout the
United States. In addition to pushing for legislative action regarding common sense gun reforms, Moms
Demand Action sponsors a corporate responsibility campaign urging American consumers, particularly
mothers, to support companies that have “gun sense” and put pressure on those that do not to change
their policies. Founded and sustained by members of the Newtown community, Sandy Hook Promise
strives to help those affected directly by the Sandy Hook shooting, and also facilitates straightforward
dialogue among Newtown community members, state legislators, Congress, and the public about creating
meaningful change. Newtown Action Alliance was founded by Newtown residents and advocates for both
legislative and cultural changes that will reduce gun violence in the community, and has led several
media campaigns in support of proposed national gun safety legislation.
Long-standing gun safety and violence prevention groups have renewed their efforts since Newtown.
These include Mayors Against Illegal Guns, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, the Coalition
to Stop Gun Violence, and the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, among others. Mayors Against
Illegal Guns has emerged as a leading counter-weight to the single-issue advocacy and spending power
of the NRA. The Mayors’ group advocated tirelessly for expanded background checks, including a $12
million ad campaign in 13 states to influence moderate Senators. With the failure of the ManchinToomey background check proposal, the group has worked to exact political consequences on Senators
18

Children’s Defense Fund

Progress Since the Newtown Massacre
who defied their constituents in voting against the bill. The group has announced that it will release a
scorecard, assigning members a letter grade based on their gun policy votes.
The mission of the newly formed Americans for Responsible Solutions (ARS), founded by former
Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband Mark Kelly on the second anniversary of the
Congresswoman’s near-fatal shooting, is to encourage elected officials to stand up for solutions to prevent
gun violence and protect responsible gun ownership. ARS has over 350,000 members and as of May
2013 had raised $11 million to fuel its efforts. In response to the Senate’s failure to pass background
check legislation, ARS sponsored radio ads that highlighted some Senators’ votes against this legislation
as a way to hold them accountable.

Faith Leaders Mobilized For Gun Safety
Since the Newtown tragedy, faith leaders and groups from across the religious spectrum have raised
their voices in support of gun safety reform.6 On January 15, 2013, members of Faiths United to
Prevent Gun Violence, 47 national religious leaders, signed a letter urging Congress to support universal
background checks, limits on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines, criminal
prosecution for gun trafficking, and improved access to mental health services.7 On March 13, 4,000
clergy from around the nation joined Newtown clergy in urging the Senate Judiciary Committee to enact
new gun safety measures, including an assault weapons ban.8 The National Cathedral in Washington,
D.C. was one of many congregations throughout the nation that answered Faith United’s call for a gun
violence prevention Sabbath on March 16, 2013.9 On April 11, leading up to the vote in the Senate,
faith-based social justice groups including PICO National Network and Sojourners hosted an interfaith
prayer vigil in Washington, D.C. in front of a makeshift graveyard of crosses, stars of David, and other
religious symbols marking the gun deaths that had occurred since December 14, 2012.10 Black clergy
have launched the African American Church Gun Control Coalition to continue their fight against gun
violence with an action plan of advocacy, education and legislative resources.

Progress at the State Level
A number of states have responded to the Newtown shooting and other mass shootings by taking common
sense steps to protect children and adults from gun violence. This list represents some of the best
examples of gun violence prevention legislation passed since Newtown.
n

In January, New York became the first state to pass comprehensive gun violence prevention
legislation after the Newtown shooting. The New York SAFE Act strengthened the state’s
assault weapons and large-capacity magazine restrictions, established universal background
checks for gun purchases, required the safe storage of guns, and provided for the removal of
guns from mentally ill individuals deemed by a professional to represent a likely threat to
themselves or others.11

n

Gun-friendly Colorado succeeded in strengthening its gun laws. Colorado, which has experienced
several gun massacres in the last two decades, took major steps toward preventing future
gun violence in March by enacting bans on large-capacity magazines12 and requiring criminal
background checks for all gun sales.13
Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

19

Progress Since the Newtown Massacre
n

Democrats and Republicans came together in Connecticut to enact common sense gun
regulations. Bipartisan legislation passed in Connecticut strengthened the state’s assault
weapons ban, banned large-capacity magazines, established universal background checks for
gun purchases, and expanded safe storage requirements, among other provisions.14 Bipartisan
support resulted in passage in May of legislation calling for a cross-agency plan to create a
comprehensive and integrated mental health system that addresses the mental, emotional
and behavioral health needs of all Connecticut children and families.

n

Maryland greatly strengthened its existing gun laws. Maryland already had strong child access
prevention requirements and universal background checks for handgun purchases; in May the
state legislature took further steps to protect children from guns with a strong gun violence
prevention package that included a fingerprinting and target training requirement for handgun
buyers, as well as a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.15

Gun Safety Measures Received a Vote in Congress – the First in Nine Years
The United States Senate responded by developing a comprehensive set of gun violence prevention
measures, which were debated and voted on in March and April. The measures included:
n

A bipartisan background check compromise provision drafted by Senators Joe Manchin
(D-WV) and Pat Toomey (R-PA), which would require background checks on gun sales
over the Internet and at gun shows, thereby partially closing the private sales loophole
that currently allows anyone to buy a gun without a background check through a private
seller.

n

A ban on the future production, importation, sale, transfer, or possession of assault weapons,
championed by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA).

n

A ban on the future production, importation, sale, transfer, or possession of high-capacity
ammunition magazines containing more than 10 rounds of ammunition sponsored by
Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT). This provision would have authorized funding for the
buyback of assault weapons and large-capacity clips.

A provision that would make straw purchasing of guns a federal crime, subject to harsher
punishments.

Ultimately the heart of the bill, the Manchin-Toomey background check compromise fell five votes
short of the 60 votes needed to pass, and the legislative effort was shelved for the time being. Senate
Majority Leader Harry Reid changed his vote to “no,” so the legislation could be brought up for a vote
again in the summer or fall of 2013.

20

Children’s Defense Fund

Federal Policy Hall of Shame
On April 17, 2013—barely four months after the Newtown massacre—the United States Senate shamefully put political calculations over the will of the American people. The Senate voted down a package
of common sense gun violence prevention measures designed to help prevent future tragedies and the
everyday gun violence that saturates the lives of children in America. Despite the support of the majority
of Americans and the majority of Senators, the Senate failed to pass a new requirement for background
checks. The Senate also defeated a ban of certain kinds of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

Public Support and Senate Vote Tallies for Selected Gun Violence Prevention Measures
Considered by the U.S. Senate in April 2013
Proposed Measure

* To avoid the threat of filibusters, the Democrats and Republicans agreed that all amendments to the gun violence prevention
package would need 60 votes for passage.
** Senate Majority Leader Reid voted “Yes” and than changed his vote to “No” so he could bring the legislation up again in the
summer or fall 2013. The recorded Senate vote for this amendment is 54 Yes – 46 No.
Source: The Washington Post, 2013, “April 2013 Post-ABC Poll – Economy, Gun Control, and Immigration Issues,” Nationwide
ban on the sale of assault weapons, nationwide ban on high-capacity ammunition clips, and law requiring background checks on
people buying guns at guns shows or online. http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/polling/april-2013-postabc-poll-economygun/2013/ 05/04/e156bdee-a681-11e2-9e1c-bb0fb0c2edd9_page.html

This Senate vote was made even more shameful by the fact that several proposals to weaken existing
gun violence prevention measures received more ‘Yes’ votes than the background checks provision.
They included a concealed carry reciprocity proposal and a provision to prevent veterans who are mentally
incapacitated from losing their right to own a gun without a court hearing. However, none of them
received the required 60 votes.
In addition to public votes like these, certain members of Congress have worked for years behind the
scenes with the NRA and other pro-gun groups to use the appropriations process to weaken enforcement
of gun laws and limit research into the prevention of gun deaths and injuries. In March 2013, just
three months after the Newtown shooting, Congress continued this shameful process by including
provisions in the fiscal year 2013 continuing resolution that limit the use of gun trace data in certain
legal proceedings, prohibit the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) from requiring
gun dealers to inventory their stocks, limit the operational flexibility and efficiency of the ATF, and limit
the ability of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health to
research ways to prevent gun injuries and fatalities.1

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

21

22

Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

Child and Teen Gun Deaths
2,694 children and teens died from guns in the United States in 2010.
n

This means:
• 1 child or teen died every 3 hours and 15 minutes.
• 7 children and teens died every day, more than 20 every three days.
• 51 children and teens died every week or five classrooms of 20 died every two weeks.

Even though total gun deaths dropped in 2010 for the fourth consecutive year, gun death
rates remained higher than in the early 1960s.
n

In 2010, the rate of gun deaths in children and teens was 30 percent higher than in 1963,
when data were first collected from all states.

n

Gun deaths in children and teens dropped 4 percent from 2009 to 2010, which meant 99
fewer children and teens were killed by guns. Both homicide and suicide gun deaths
decreased in 2010: homicide deaths dropped 4 percent, from 1,855 to 1,773, and suicide
deaths dropped 6 percent, from 800 to 749. In contrast accidental deaths increased
18 percent, from 114 to 134 deaths.

n

While gun homicide rates in children and teens have decreased in recent years, rates in
2010 remained more than three times higher than in 1963. Suicide rates in 2010 were
nearly double what they had been in 1963.

Rates of Gun Deaths in Children and Teens, by Manner, 1963-2010

Deaths per 100,000 Children and Teens

8

7.7
Total

7

Homicide

6

Suicide

5

Unknown

Accident

4
3

3.2
2.4

2

2.1
1.3

1 0.6
0

0.5

1963

0.9
0.2
0.1

0.2

1968

1973

1978

1983

1988

1993

1998

2003

2010

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Calculations by the Children’s
Defense Fund. Rates prior to 1979 include a very small number of deaths from explosives (estimated to be less than
0.1 percent of deaths.) Rates of unknown/undetermined intent are not available as a separate category prior to 1968.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

23

Child and Teen Gun Deaths
Children and teen gun deaths are most likely to be homicides, in contrast to adult gun
deaths which are most likely to be suicides.
n

In 2010, there were 1,773 homicide gun deaths among children and teens, 749 suicide gun
deaths, 134 accidental gun deaths, and 38 deaths of undetermined intent.

n

Two out of three child and teen gun deaths in 2010 were homicides and a little over one out
of four were suicides. In contrast, among adults two out of three deaths were suicides, and
one out of three was a homicide.

Gun Deaths Among Children and Teens and Among Adults 20 and Over, by Manner, 2010
Adults (20 and Over)

Children and Teens

5%

1%

2%

1%

32%
28%
66%
65%

Homicide

Suicide

Accidental

Undertermined

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Calculations by the Children's Defense Fund.

Since 1963, three times more children and teens died from guns on American soil than U.S.
soldiers were killed in action in wars abroad. An estimated 166,500 children and teens have
died from guns since 1963.

24

n

Between 1963 and 2010, an estimated 166,500 children and teens died from guns on
American soil, while 52,183 U.S. soldiers were killed in action in the Vietnam, Afghanistan,
and Iraq wars combined during that same time period.1

n

On average 3,470 children and teens every year were killed by guns during this periodâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the
equivalent of 174 classrooms of 20 children every year.

Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

Child and Teen Gun Deaths
Gun violence affects children of all races although Black children and teens are
most at risk.
n

Since data collection began in 1963, Black children and teens have consistently suffered
from the highest rates of gun deaths.

n

While Black children and teens have experienced the highest rates of gun deaths, the largest
number of deaths has been among White children and teens. Out of an estimated 166,600
deaths, 53 percent were among White children and teens, and 36 percent were among
Blacks the same age.

n

Rates of gun deaths soared in the late 1980s and early 1990s among Black children and
teens, and to a lesser degree among their Asian or Pacific Islander and Hispanic counterparts.

n

In 2010, gun death rates among Black children and teens remained higher than in the
late 1970s and early 1980s, and nearly twice as high as rates in the other race and ethnic
groups. Gun death rates in 2010 were at their lowest recorded level for Asian/Pacific Islander
and for Hispanic children and teens, and near the lowest recorded level for White and for
American Indian/Alaska Native children and teens.

Rates of Gun Deaths Among Children and Teens, by Race/Ethnicity, 1963-2010

Deaths per 100,000 Children and Teens

25

22.9
Black
American Indian/
Alaska Native

20

Hispanic
White

15

Asian/Pacific Islander

10

9.4

8.6
7.7

4.3

4.8

5

2.7
2.0
0.6

1.9
2.1

0
1963

1968

1973

1978

1983

1988

1993

1998

2003

2010

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Calculations by the Children's Defense
Fund. Data for American Indians/Alaska Natives and Asians/Pacific Islanders are not available prior to 1981, and for Hispanics prior
to 1990. Starting in 1990 the rates for Whites, Blacks, American Indians/Alaska Natives, and Asians/Pacific Islanders exclude
Hispanics. Rates prior to 1979 include a very small number of deaths from explosives (estimated to be fewer than 50 deaths.)

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

25

Child and Teen Gun Deaths

Black Children and Teens Killed by Guns from 1963–2010 and
the Recorded Lynchings of Black People of All Ages in America from 1882–1968
70,000
59,265
Number of Deaths

60,000

Between 1963 and 2010, 59,265
Black children and teens were killed
by guns—more than 17 times greater
than the recorded lynchings of Black
people of all ages in the 86 years
from 1882 to 1968.

50,000
40,000
30,000
20,000
10,000

3,446
Black Children and Teens Killed by
Guns (1963-2010)

Lynchings of Black People
(1882-1968)

Note: Gun death numbers exclude Hispanics from 1990-2010, and include a very small number of deaths
from explosives from 1963-1978 (estimated to be fewer than 20 deaths.)
Sources: Gun deaths: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics.
Calculations by the Children's Defense Fund; Lynchings: Archives at Tuskegee Institute, “Lynchings: By Year
and Race, 1882-1968.”

n

In 2010, gun deaths claimed the lives of 2,694 children and teens: 1,205 were Black, 909
White, 512 Hispanic, 41 American Indian or Alaska Native, and 27 Asian or Pacific Islander.

n

Although Black children and teens were only 15 percent of American children and teens in
2010, they were 45 percent of child and teen gun deaths.

n

Black children and teens had the highest rate of gun deaths per capita, 9.4 deaths per
100,000 Black children and teens. This was 4.7 times higher than the rate for White children
and teens, who had the second lowest rate of death after Asians or Pacific Islanders.
American Indian or Alaska Native children and teens were also at increased risk of gun
violence, with a rate of gun deaths that was 2.4 times higher than among their White peers.

n

Black children and teens were at increased risk of dying from a gun due to high gun homicide
rates. Black children and teens were 17 times more likely to die from a gun homicide than
White children and teens and 24 times more likely than their Asian or Pacific Islander peers.

n

American Indian or Alaska Native children and teens had the highest rate of gun suicides,
8.5 times higher than Asian or Pacific Islander children and teens and nearly twice as high
as White children and teens.

n

Asian or Pacific Islander children and teens had the lowest rates of all types of gun deaths.

For more details about gun deaths by race and ethnicity and manner of death see the Appendix.

26

Children’s Defense Fund

Child and Teen Gun Deaths

Gun Deaths in Children and Teens,
by Race/Ethnicity, 2010

Hispanic
19%

White
34%

Asian/
Pacific Islander
1%

American Indian/
Alaska Native
2%

Black
45%

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics.
Calculations by the Children's Defense Fund.

The majority of gun deaths occur in boys.
n

Eighty-seven percent of gun deaths occurred in boys, and 13 percent in girls in 2010.

n

Boys were nearly seven times more likely to be killed by gunfire than girls.

n

Boys had higher death rates for all types of gun deaths. They were eight times more likely
than girls to die in a gun suicide, six times more likely to die in a gun homicide, and
five times more likely to die a gun accident.

Older teenagers are most at risk from gun violence.
n

Eighty-six percent of gun deaths in 2010 occurred in 15-19 year-olds, 8 percent among
10-14 year-olds, and 3 percent each in 5-9 year-olds and children under age 5. But more
children under 5 were killed by guns than law enforcement officers were killed by guns
in the line of duty.

n

The manner of gun deaths differs according to the age of the victim. While homicides were
the most common manner of gun death for all age groups, gun suicides rarely occurred in
children under 10, and gun accidents were most prevalent in younger children.

n

Black males ages 15-19 were nearly 30 times more likely to die in a gun homicide than White
males and more than three times more likely to die in a gun homicide than Hispanic males
of the same age.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

27

Child and Teen Gun Deaths

Preschoolers and Law Enforcement Officers
Killed by Guns, 2010
100
82

Number of Deaths

80
55

60
40
20
0
Preschoolers

Law Enforcement
Officers

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Calculations by the Children's
Defense Fund; Law enforcement deaths (includes felonious and accidental deaths by firearms): Federal Bureau of
Investigation, Tables 28 and 64. http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/leoka/leoka-2010. Excludes Puerto Rico. Calculations
by the Children’s Defense Fund.

Black males ages 15-19 were nearly 30 times
more likely to be killed in a gun homicide
than their White peers.

40
30
20

14.6
12.2

11.1

10
2.2

1.8

Asian/
Pacific
Islander

White

0
All Races

Black

Hispanic

American
Indian/
Alaska Native

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Calculations by the Children's
Defense Fund. Black, White, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Asian/Pacific Islander categories exclude Hispanics.

28

Children’s Defense Fund

Child and Teen Gun Injuries
15,576 children and teens were injured by guns in 2010.*
n

This means:
• 1 child or teen was injured every 34 minutes.
• 43 children and teens were injured every day.
• 300 children and teens were injured every week.

n

The estimated number of children and teens injured by guns in 2010 increased by 13 percent,
with 1,785 more injuries than the year before, bringing the number of injuries up to the level
last seen in 2005.

Seventy-eight percent of all gun injuries for children and teens in 2010 were the result
of assaults (12,077 injuries), 19 percent were accidental (3,019) and three percent were
self-inflicted (480).**

Rates of Gun Injury Among Children and Teens, by Manner, 2001–2010

Injuries per 100,000 Children and Teens

25

20

Total

Accidental

Assault

Self Harm
18.7

17.9

14.5

15
11.4

10
6.3

5

3.6
0.6

0.2

0
2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Non Fatal Injury Reports. Accessed through the Web-Based Injury
Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS). Based on data from the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s
National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS). Data are only available since 2001. Represents estimates extrapolated from the number of gun injuries reported by a nationally representative sample of emergency rooms. Estimates are
unstable due to small numbers for the Hispanic and Other categories for all years as well as for Blacks in 2003, 2004,
2008, and 2010 and Whites in 2004, 2008, and 2010.

* This number is an estimate extrapolated from the number of gun injuries reported by a nationally representative sample of emergency rooms.
* * Estimates of self-harm injuries are unstable due to small numbers.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

29

Child and Teen Gun Injuries
Three Times More Children and Teens Injured by Guns in 2010 than the
Number of U.S. Soldiers Wounded in Action that Year in the War in Afghanistan.
18,000
Number of Injuries

16,000

15,576

14,000
12,000
10,000
8,000
5,247

6,000
4,000
2,000
0
Children and Teens
Injured by Guns in 2010

U.S. Military Wounded in
Action in Afghanistan in 2010

Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Non Fatal Injury Reports. Accessed through the Web-Based Injury Statistics
Query and Reporting System (WISQARS); U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Casualty Analysis System, accessed
at https://www.dmdc.osd.mil/dcas/pages/casualties.xhtml.

Children of color continue to be disproportionately affected by gun violence, with Black
children and teens most at risk for being injured by a gun.
n

In 2010, an estimated 7,232 Black, 3,571 Hispanic, and 2,839 White children and teens
were injured by guns.***

n

The rate of gun injuries increased slightly for children and teens in all race and ethnic
groups between 2009 and 2010.

n

In 2010, 46 percent of gun injuries were among Black, 23 percent among Hispanic, and
18 percent among White children and teens.

n

Slightly more than half of assault gun injuries occurred in Black, and over a quarter were in
Hispanic children and teens. Nearly all self-inflicted gun injuries were in White children and
teens, as were over half of all accidental injuries.

n

Black children and teens were eight-and-a-half times more likely than their White peers
and two-and-a-half times more likely than their Hispanic peers to be injured by a gun.
Hispanic children and teens were over three times more likely to be injured by a gun than
their White peers.

n

A Black was nearly 32 times more likely to be injured by a gun during an assault than a
White, and two-and-a-half times more likely than a Hispanic child or teen.

* ** Another 1,584 children and teens whose race and ethnicity was “not stated” and another 349 whose race and ethnicity was categorized
as “other non-Hispanic” were also estimated to be injured by guns.

30

Children’s Defense Fund

Child and Teen Gun Injuries
Rates of Gun Injuries Among Children and Teens, by Race/Ethnicity, 2010
Injuries per 100,000 Chlidren and Teens

60
52.1

50
40
30
20.0

20
10
0

Black

Hispanic

6.9

6.1

Other

White

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Non Fatal Injury Reports. Accessed through the Web-Based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting
System (WISQARS). Based on data from the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS).
Represents estimates extrapolated from the number of gun injuries reported by a nationally representative sample of emergency rooms.
Estimates are unstable due to small numbers.

Older teens are most at risk for being injured by a gun.
n

In 2010, the overwhelming majority of gun injuries happened to older teens, with 89 percent
of gun injuries in teens ages 15-19.

Boys made up 88 percent of all gun injuries among ages 0-19 in 2010. They comprised 90
percent of gun assault injuries, 88 percent of accidental gun injuries and 76 percent of all
self-inflicted gun injuries.

n

Boys were more than seven times more likely to be injured by a gun than girls.

Ka’Nard Allen has been shot on two occasions in his 10-year-old life. The first time two bullets
from a gun hit him in the leg and back of the neck at his 10th birthday party—another bullet
fatally struck his 5-year-old cousin. The second time, a bullet from a gun grazed his right cheek
almost a year later at a Mother’s Day parade, during which 18 other people were shot. Despite
these attacks, Ka’Nard is moving forward through counseling, volunteering at his church, and
dedication to the drums in hopes of joining a drill team.15,16,17

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

31

32

Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

International Gun Death Comparisons
U.S. children and teens are 17 times more likely to die from guns than their peers in other
high-income countries combined. Is this what we mean by U.S. exceptionalism?
To put gun deaths of children and teens in the United States in context, CDF collected the most recent
data on gun deaths in other high-income countries. Including the United States, data were available for
26 countries out of the 31 high-income members of the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD).* These data reveal that U.S. children and teens die from guns at a much higher
rate than in all other high-income countries for which recent data are readily available:
n

Gun death rates for children and teens in the U.S. were over four times higher than in
Canada, the country with the next highest rate, nearly seven times higher than in Israel,
and nearly 65 times higher than in the United Kingdom.

n

Children and teens in the U.S. were 17 times more likely to die from a gun than children
and teens in the 25 other countries combined.

U.S. children and teens were 17
times more likely to die from a
gun than children in 25 other
high-income countries combined.

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

Sources: Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund analysis of data from World Health Organization, 2012, Inter-country Comparison of Mortality
for Selected Cause of Death â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Total Firearm Death, European Detailed Mortality Database (DMDB). Copenhagen: World Health
Organisation Regional Office for Europe. Accessed January 18, 2013; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2010, Fatal Injury
Reports. Accessed using the Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQRAS). Chart includes the latest data
available for each country: 2010 for all countries except Belgium and Denmark (2006), and France, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Italy and
Luxembourg (2009). Rates are not age-adjusted.

* Data were not available for Australia, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand and Switzerland.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

33

International Gun Death Comparisons
n

U.S. children and teens made up 43 percent of all children and teens in these 26 countries
but were 93 percent of all children and teens killed by guns.

n

Higher gun death rates in the U.S. were observed for all types of gun deaths (homicides,
suicides and accidents) but were particularly pronounced for homicide deaths. U.S. children
and teens were 32 times more likely than their peers in 24* other high-income countries
combined to die from a gun homicide. They were also 10 times more likely to die from a gun
suicide or a gun accident.

n

Gun death rates among children ages 0-14 were 12 times higher in the U.S. compared to 25
other high-income countries combined: these children were 16 times more likely than their
peers in other high-income countries to die from a gun accident, 15 times more likely to die
from a gun homicide, and 10 times more likely to die from a gun suicide.**

Ratio of U.S. Child and Teen Gun Death Rates to Child and Teen Gun Death Rates
in 25 Other High-Income Countries, by Manner of Death
35
32:1
U.S. Rate: 2.13

30

All Gun Deaths

Non-U.S. Rate: 0.07

Homicide Gun Deaths

Times More Likely

25

Suicide Gun Deaths
Accident Gun Deaths

20
17:1
15

U.S. Rate: 3.24
Non-U.S. Rate: 0.19

10:1
10
5

10:1

U.S. Rate: 0.9

U.S. Rate: 0.16

Non-U.S. Rate: 0.09

Non-U.S Rate: 0.016

0
Sources: Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund analysis of data from World Health Organization, 2012, Inter-country Comparison of
Mortality for Selected Cause of Death â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Total Firearm Death, European Detailed Mortality Database (DMDB).
Copenhagen: World Health Organisation Regional Office for Europe. Accessed January 18, 2013; Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention. 2010. Fatal Injury Reports. Accessed using the Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting
System (WISQRAS). Chart includes the latest data available for each country: 2010 for most countries, except Belgium
and Denmark (2006), and France, Hungary, Italy, Israel and Luxembourg (2009). Rates are not age-adjusted.

* Homicide gun data were not available for Iceland.
* *Homicide gun data were not available for Iceland, and accident gun data were not available for Austria, Hungary, Iceland, Luxembourg and
Slovenia.

34

Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

International Gun Death Comparisons
The U.S. leads high-income countries in gun deaths for people of all ages.
n

Among people of all ages, the gun death rate was nearly eight times higher in the United
States. Nearly 82 percent of all gun deaths seen in the 26 countries were from the U.S.,
which is home to only 38 percent of the population in these countries.

Guns make the U.S. more violent than other high-income countries.
n

Data on non-gun homicides and suicides show that guns play a particularly significant role
in increasing U.S. homicide and suicide rates. Americans are 17 times more likely to die
from a gun homicide than residents in the 24 other high-income countries combined, but
only two-and-a-half-times more likely to die from a non-gun homicide.

n

Americans are six times more likely to kill themselves with a gun, but they are 40 percent
less likely than residents of other high-income countries to kill themselves by other means.

The U.S. leads industrialized nations in gun ownership and gun imports.
n

The United States accounts for less than 5 percent of the global population, yet Americans
own an estimated 35 to 50 percent of all civilian-owned guns in the world.1 Of the estimated
8 million new guns manufactured annually across the world, about half (4.5 million) are
purchased by Americans.2 In a 2007 survey of 178 countries, the United States had the
highest number of civilian guns, with a staggering 270 million guns.3 India had the second
highest numberâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;46 millionâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;less than a fifth of the U.S. arsenal.

n

Among the 178 countries, the United States was ranked number one in the number of guns
per capita, with an average rate of 88.8 per 100 peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;or nearly nine guns for every 10
people in America.4 Yemen took second place with 54.8 per 100 people. The United States
and Yemen were the only two countries with a civilian gun ownership rate greater than
50 per 100 people.5

Source: Small Arms Survey 2007, Annexe 4. The largest civilian firearms arsenals for 178 countries. Available at
http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2007/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2007-Chapter-02-annexe-4-EN.pdf

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

35

We Can Do Better: Action Steps
1. Urge your members of Congress to protect children from gun violence. Support common
sense gun safety and gun violence prevention measures for the nation including:

36

n

Universal background checks. The 1993 Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act requires
federally-licensed gun dealers to conduct background checks on every sale. But as many as
40 percent of guns purchased each year are purchased with no background check from private
unlicensed gun sellers who are exempt from the background check requirement. More than
80 percent of Americans support expanding background checks to cover all or most gun
sales.1 Eight states have closed the private sales loophole by requiring universal background
checks for all gun sales. The effectiveness of these laws is limited when criminals can easily
buy guns in states without a universal background check requirement. A federal amendment
adding a requirement for background checks for all sales on the internet and at gun shows
failed by five votes in the Senate in April 2013. Two-thirds of Americans believe Congress
did the wrong thing.2 Congress must require criminal background checks on anyone who
attempts to purchase a gun regardless of where and from whom they buy it.

n

Limits on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines. The federal Assault
Weapons Ban signed into law in 1994 that banned the manufacture and sale of semi-automatic
assault weapons with two or more military features and high-capacity ammunition magazines
that contained more than 10 rounds of ammunition expired in 2004. Amendments that
would have restored and strengthened both came up for a vote in March 2013, but failed in
the Senate despite the support of the majority of Americans. Assault weapons and high-capacity
magazines were used in the mass shootings at Virginia Tech; Tucson, Arizona; Aurora, Colorado;
and Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Congress must restore the ban
on both high-capacity magazines and on assault weapons.

n

Consumer safety standards, childproof safety features, and authorized-user identification
technology for all guns. Every gun in this country should be childproof. One-third of all
households with children have at least one gun in the home.3 It is estimated that nearly 2
million children live in homes with an unlocked and loaded gun.4 Federal law is silent on
gun-related consumer safety standards and child access prevention. In fact, the production
and manufacture of guns is specifically exempt from oversight by the Consumer Product
Safety Commission. As a result, many handguns do not contain easily-installed life-saving
safety features. Only 27 states have even attempted to keep children from accessing guns by
passing child access prevention laws.5 There is a bill currently introduced in the House of
Representatives, H.R. 2005, the Personalized Handgun Safety Act, which would take a major
step forward for gun safety by requiring handguns manufactured in the future to be fitted
with personalization technology that would limit access only to an authorized user. Congress
must subject guns to the same consumer product safety regulations that cover virtually every
other consumer product. Congress must require childproof safety features on all guns.

n

Better services for children and families facing violence in their homes and communities and
for children with unmet mental health needs. Children exposed to violence in their families
or communities suffer lifelong consequences. Better services for these children and their
families, as well as for children with unmet mental health needs, are needed to address the

Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

We Can Do Better: Action Steps
impact of violence on children and prevent violence in the future. Families need to have
options other than calling the police when a child or adult is in need of mental health treatment.
Congress should restore and increase funds for the prevention and treatment of mental
health problems in children and young adults, expand the reach of quality programs to
address childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s social and emotional needs in communities and schools, strengthen the
capacity of publicly supported health programs for children to better address childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mental
health needs, and fund initiatives to increase the number of well-trained child psychiatrists,
psychologists, social workers, school counselors and specialized community advocates.
n

Public funding for gun violence prevention research and programs. Since 1996, the NRA and
its Congressional allies have succeeded in shutting down federally funded research on the
prevention of gun injuries and fatalities. In 1996 the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention lost all funding for gun violence research.6 In 2011 the National Institutes of
Health met the same fate. As a result, we know far less than we need to about what works to
prevent the more than 100,000 gun fatalities and injuries that occur every year. Congress
must reinstate funding for gun violence prevention by the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention and other federal agencies.

n

Resources and authority for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
(ATF) and law enforcement agencies to properly enforce gun laws. Since the 1970s, the NRA
and its allies in Congress have made it considerably more difficult for federal agencies and
local law enforcement to hold criminal gun dealers and traffickers accountable and keep illegal
guns off the streets. Furthermore, the ATF has not had a permanent director since 2006.
Congress must stop hampering the ATFâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work and give the ATF the resources and regulatory
authority it needs to hold criminal gun dealers and traffickers accountable.

2. Urge state and local governments to protect children from guns.
States have the authority to enact many laws that could protect children from gun violence. Since
Newtown, four states have passed common sense gun safety reforms. Urge your state legislators and
local officials to:
n

Support laws to prevent child access to guns, such as requirements for locking devices,
personalized gun technology and imposing criminal liability when guns are left unsecured or
stored negligently. All guns should be childproof and kept secured from unsupervised children.

n

Support universal background checks. In the absence of a federal universal background
check requirement, eight states have enacted their own. A recent study found that states
with background checks on private sales had 16 percent lower firearm fatality rates.7

n

Support limits on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition. Seven states and the
District of Columbia have passed laws limiting the sale and/or possession of assault weapons,
and eight states and the District of Columbia have state laws limiting the sale and/or possession
of large capacity ammunition magazines.

n

Oppose efforts to limit the ability of schools, physicians and others to do their part to keep
children safe from guns. For example, Florida attempted to prevent physicians from asking
patients about guns in homes and safe storage practices.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

37

We Can Do Better: Action Steps
n

Oppose laws allowing concealed weapons on school grounds, in child care centers, in
churches or other public venues where children gather.

n

Demand the repeal of “Stand Your Ground” laws now in effect in 26 states that encourage
a shoot first and ask questions later approach to confrontations.

3. Parents, remove guns from your home and be vigilant about where your children play.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates nearly 2 million children live in homes with
loaded, unlocked guns.8 The presence of guns increases the risk of death. Most adolescent suicides
involve a gun owned by a parent.9 Parents may think they have adequately protected their children by
safely storing their guns, but this sense of security is often misplaced. A study by the Harvard Injury
Control Research Center found that 39 percent of children interviewed knew the location of their parents’
guns and 22 percent said they had handled the guns despite their parents reporting otherwise.10
Children under 10 were just as likely to have reported knowing where the guns were kept and having
handled them as older children. Research shows that it is not enough to talk to children about the dangers
of guns. Children exposed to gun safety programs are no less likely to play with guns than those who
are not exposed to such classes. Removing guns from the home and asking questions about guns in the
homes of your children’s friends are the best ways to protect your children from gun deaths.

4. Boycott products that glamorize violence.
Our culture frequently glamorizes guns and violence in movies, television, music, video games and on
the internet. Many shows targeted at children have violent themes and language. The American
Academy of Pediatrics has found that there is consistent scientific evidence that viewing entertainment
violence can lead to increases in aggressive attitudes, values and behavior, particularly in children. Refuse
to buy or use products that glamorize or make violence socially acceptable. Turn off violent programming
and read or play with your children instead. Talk to them about the importance of rejecting violence as
a cultural or personal value.

5. Bring attention to the number of children killed and injured by gun violence and the truth
about guns.
Children and teens impacted by gun violence and concerned community members can unite to educate
others about our crisis of gun violence. There are moving examples of parents and family members of a
child killed or injured by a gun channeling their grief and anger into broadening public understanding
of the devastation of guns and increasing political support for stronger gun laws. In the wake of the
Newtown shooting, several new grassroots groups have formed to bring attention to this issue. Mobilize
support to protect children from gun violence:

38

n

Organize a group of influential community leaders to see and hear first-hand the effects of
gun violence. Let them hear from children and teens who were victims of gun violence.
Arrange visits with medical staff from your local hospital who directly serve gun violence victims
and their families. Involve police officers who interact with both victims and perpetrators.

n

Urge local newspapers, radio and television stations to publish stories and feature photographs
of children and teens killed by guns in your community. Get them to keep a running tally
of young gun victims in 2013.

Children’s Defense Fund

We Can Do Better: Action Steps
n

Encourage your place of worship to read the names of children killed by guns in your community
and publish their photos in the congregational bulletin. Begin a visual memorial to the young
lives lost to gun violence by placing a stone in a central and meaningful location to mark
each child lost to gun violence in your community.

n

Use our We Can Do Better social media tools to bring attention to the impact of gun violence
in your community: www.childrensdefense.org/DoBetter

n

Encourage and help children and teens who have been victims of gun violence to write a
letter to the editor or an opinion column about how to stop the violence.

n

Connect with groups working to reduce the epidemic of gun violence in this country.
See page 54 in this report for the names of organizations that you can help to make a difference.

6. Offer parents, children and teens the resources, support, and tools to survive and work
against the culture of violence.
n

Offer a safe refuge for children exposed to violence. Recognize the negative impact violence
can have not only on children who are direct victims or who have lost siblings or close friends
to violence, but also on those who live in constant fear of gun violence in their communities.
Schools, congregations, community mental health centers and other community resources
should offer safe places after school and on the weekends for children and teens and also
help them and their parents understand, confront and deal with the anger, fear and loss of
control they feel.

n

Support non-violent conflict resolution in our homes, schools, congregations and communities.
Family violence in our society is an epidemic, child abuse and neglect are widespread, and
children are exposed to television programming that glamorizes guns, violence and brutality.
Conflict resolution skills are essential but not typically taught in school or at home. Concerned
parents can partner with schools, community groups and faith congregations to organize
nonviolent conflict resolution support groups and push for adoption of a conflict resolution
curriculum in your local school.

n

Support innovative efforts to promote positive youth development. Many children and teens,
particularly in urban areas, are exposed to gangs, drugs, violence and guns on a daily basis.
We must offer positive alternatives and role models for them, especially during after-school
hours, weekends and summers. We must open our congregational, school and community
doors and engage young people in purposeful activities.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

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40

Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

Selected Mass Shootings Involving Children in the Past 12 Months*
What will it take for Congress, states, cities, and citizens to say enough
is enough and pass common sense gun laws to protect our children?
n

Louisville, KY • June 19, 2013 – A man shot and killed his 8-year-old daughter and her mother,
while also wounding his mother during a domestic dispute before fatally shooting himself.
The girl’s mother, had a protective order against the shooter that also barred him from
possessing a gun; it expired in February 2013.1

n

Providence, RI • June 16, 2013 – A 12-year-old girl was shot in the back and killed while
attending a graduation party. Three women, ages 23, 33, and 44, were also shot but survived
their gunshot wounds. The shooter, wearing camouflage and a black mask, fled the area after
opening fire.2

n

Chicago, IL • June 15, 2013 – Two male teens, ages 15 and 19, and a 23-year-old man
were shot and injured, and had to be hospitalized in critical condition. During the same
weekend (June 14-16) a total of nine people were killed and 47 were shot in a series of
unrelated crimes in Chicago.3,4,5

n

Las Vegas, NV • June 1, 2013 – A man is believed to have shot his girlfriend and her two
daughters, ages 4 and 17, before turning the gun on himself. Only the man and 4-year-old
girl survived.6

n

Hampton, VA • May 25, 2013 – A shooting near a spring carnival resulted in the death of a
16-year-old and hospitalization of four other teens who were injured.7

n

Saginaw, MI • May 23, 2013 – A 17-year-old girl was fatally shot while attending a pre-prom
event after an argument broke out. Three women, ages 18, 19, and 39, were wounded.8

n

Pittsburgh, PA • May 21, 2013 – Three unknown gunmen began random shooting from their
car during a neighborhood picnic, killing a 1-year-old boy and injuring his two aunts.9

n

New Orleans, LA • May 12, 2013 – During a Mother’s Day parade, gunmen fired into a crowd,
injuring 19 people. Among the hurt were two 10-year-old children, a boy and a girl. This was
the second time the boy was shot in one year.10

n

Manchester, IL • April 24, 2013 – A man shot his way into a house, killing a great-grandmother,
a young couple, and two children, ages 1 and 5. A 6-year-old girl survived with injuries to the
face. The gunman was killed in a shootout with police several hours later.11

n

Phoenix, AZ • April 14, 2013 – Six people were shot and two teenagers, ages 18 and 16,
were killed in a drive-by shooting at a house party.12

n

Atwater, CA • March 30, 2013 – A gang-related shooting at an Easter gathering took the lives
of three teenagers, ages 19, 18, and 16, and wounded a 21-year-old and a 16-year-old.13

n

Jackson, MS • March 26, 2013 – A 13-year-old girl and two adults were found dead in their
home, each with a gunshot wound to the head.14

n

Miami, FL • February 20, 2013 – A man shot his wife and two children, killing his
11-year-old son before taking his own life.15,16

* Mass shootings included here are single shooting events in which three or more individuals were shot, including at least one child.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

41

42

n

Oakdale, MN • February 11, 2013 – A 34-year-old man shot randomly at passers-by in
their cars killing a 9-year-old boy who had just been picked up from child care and injuring his
mother and another woman. A judge ordered the arrested shooter to undergo a mental health
evaluation after his arrest.17

n

Denver, CO • February 6, 2013 – A woman used a handgun and a shotgun to shoot her three
children, ages 1, 2, and 4, before taking her own life. Only her 2-year-old daughter survived
a gunshot wound to the head.18,19

n

Erwin, TN • February 2, 2013 – A man shot and killed his wife and two children, 11 and
12 years old, before killing himself. The couple had a history of domestic problems.20

n

Little Rock, AR • January 30, 2013 – A 17-year-old girl was killed and two other teens, ages
17 and 19, were injured when they were shot while sitting inside their car. The motive for the
shooting was unknown.21

n

South Valley, NM • January 19, 2013 – A 15-year-old boy killed three of his siblings, ages 2,
5, and 9, and his parents using several weapons, including a military style assault rifle.
The shooter’s father was an ex-gang member who operated a prison ministry and served as a
volunteer chaplain for the fire department.22

n

Hazard City, KY • January 16, 2013 – A 21-year-old man killed a 20-year-old student, her
uncle, and a 12-year-old girl in the parking lot of Hazard Community Technical College. The
school’s president credited the school’s emergency lockdown plan with minimizing casualties.23

n

Tuscaloosa, AL • January 12, 2013 – An 18–year-old shot four people in an apartment.
The group was playing dominoes when the gunman stood up and opened fire, injuring three
people, ages 18, 22, and 30, and killing a 17-year-old girl.24

n

Greensboro, NC • January 7, 2013 – A domestic dispute led to a mother shooting her two
children, ages 14 and 18, and their father before fatally shooting herself. Her 14-year-old
son did not survive.25

n

Newtown, CT • December 14, 2012 – A 24-year-old gunman killed 20 first graders and six
school staff at Sandy Hook Elementary School before killing himself when police arrived.
Earlier, the gunman had also killed his mother.26,27

n

Portland, OR • December 11, 2012 – A 22-year-old shooter killed two and injured a 15-year
old girl before killing himself at a shopping mall crowded with thousands of holiday shoppers.
The injured victim had no relation to the shooter.28

n

Madera, CA • November 28, 2012 – An 8-year-old girl was shot when she was caught in the
cross fire of a gang related argument. Two men were also shot, the 18-year-old did not survive
his injuries.29

n

New Town, ND • November 18, 2012 – A grandmother and three of the grandchildren she
helped care for, ages 6, 10, and 13, were fatally shot by a man who police believe killed himself
with a knife later that day. One of the grandchildren, a boy age 12, escaped being shot by
pretending to be dead.30

n

Detroit, MI • October 24, 2012 – A 4-year-old boy, his mother, and her boyfriend were injured
by bullets that were intended for their neighbor. The neighbor, a male, died from his gunshot
wounds.31,32

Children’s Defense Fund

n

Inglewood, CA • October 20, 2012 – A family of six was attacked by a neighbor who blamed
them for his eviction notice. Both parents and three of the four children, ages 4, 6, and 7,
were shot. The father and 4-year-old son were killed.33

n

Toledo, OH • October 16, 2012 – A 3-year-old and his mother were killed by the boy’s father,
who then shot and injured three adults in a neighboring apartment. The gunman was killed
by police officers after opening fire on them.34

n

Herndon, VA • September 23, 2012 – A man shot and killed his wife and two sons, ages 13
and 16, before fatally turning the gun on himself.35

n

Detroit, MI • September 22, 2012 – A parked car was riddled with bullets by an unknown
shooter, killing a 15-year-old girl. Her 23-year-old-sister and a 25-year-old man survived their
gunshot wounds.36

n

Albemarle, VA • August 28, 2012 – A 19-year-old man shot and killed his mother, 14-year-old
brother, and 16-year-old sister before fatally shooting himself. They are survived by the children’s
father, who was out of town for work during the shooting.37

n

Chicago, IL • August 24, 2012 – Eight people were wounded on a single street on the South
Side of Chicago in a drive-by shooting. The victims ranged in age from 14 to 20 years. This
incident was among several unrelated shootings the weekend of August 24 that wounded a
total of 19 people.38

n

Aurora, CO • July 20, 2012 – Twelve people were killed and 58 were injured during a midnight
movie premiere when a 24-year-old shooter unloaded four weapons, including a semi-automatic
assault rifle with a 100-round magazine into the crowd. Ten members of the audience were
killed in the theater, while two others died later at area hospitals. A 6-year-old girl was among
those killed.39,40

n

Bridgeport, CT • July 20, 2012 – A 15-year-old girl was shot and killed at a home following
a ‘sweet sixteen’ party. Two other teens, ages 15 and 17, were also shot by the two unknown
gunmen.41

n

Seattle, WA • July 2, 2012 – Gunfire struck six people at a party at a South Seattle home,
killing a 21-year old and injuring five others, ages 17, 18, 20, 20, and 21. Police say it
was unclear how many people fired their guns at the party.42

Eleven-year-old Tayloni Mazyck was walking near her apartment building in Brooklyn with her mother
and her niece on May 31, 2013 when she was caught in gang-related cross fire that changed her life
forever. A bullet crashed into innocent Tayloni’s chin and lodged in her spine. According to Brooklyn
prosecutor Jordan Rossman, her spine is severed and she will be paralyzed for life.18
Instead of walking in her fifth-grade graduation ceremony, Tayloni was transferred to Rusk Institute of
Rehabilitation Medicine for the summer. According to Tayloni’s mother, Tayloni has ups and downs.
Some days she is in intense pain and easily frustrated because she cannot do simple things such as
scratch her nose, other days she is convinced she will walk some day in the future. The young girl
suffers from post traumatic stress, says she is too scared to go home, and wakes up crying from
flashbacks of that terrible night.19

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

43

The Invisible Wounds of Gun Violence:
The Psychological and Emotional Trauma of Gun Violence on Children
“My friends are dead. I saw the bad man. He was next to me when we ran out.”
“Do you think it is my fault?”
“There is nothing you can do or say that will convince me that this will not happen again.”
These are some of the devastating voices of children who witnessed the massacre at Sandy Hook
Elementary School. They, along with every other child in America who has seen gun violence in their
home, on their street, or in their neighborhood have lost their sense of security. Exposure to gun violence
takes an enormous emotional toll on children whether they are victims or witnesses. Exposure to chronic
violence can lead to long-lasting, severe psychological problems and lifelong limitations on health,
well-being, relationships and personal success.
The Prevalence of Children Exposed to Violence
Children are more likely to be exposed to violence than adults.1 The 2008 National Survey of
Children’s Exposure to Violence found that nearly two-thirds (60.6 percent) of children and youth had
been victims or witnesses of violence within the past year.2 Nearly 1 in 10 children (9.6 percent) and
1 in 5 14-17 year-olds (22.2 percent) had witnessed a shooting at some point in their lives.3 This
number is thought to be higher among low-income children.
The Psychological and Emotional Impact of Violence on Children
Children exposed to violence are at risk for major disruptions in their basic cognitive, emotional and
brain development that can interfere with their health and well-being. These disruptions can include
difficulty sleeping and eating, irritability, attention and concentration problems, aggression, depressed
mood and withdrawal, anxiety and intrusive thoughts, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), failure in
school, impulsivity (i.e. substance abuse, delinquency and promiscuous sexual behavior) and repeated
victimization. When the trauma is untreated, symptoms can persist into adulthood bringing lifelong
limitations on health and well-being, and increasing their risk of perpetuating the cycle of violence.
Protecting Children from the Negative Effects of Violence
Research has found that early identification, effective intervention, and continuous follow-up are important
strategies to prevent or lessen the impact of exposure to violence. Parents, mental health professionals,
and school administrators can help protect children from the harmful effects of gun-related trauma.4
Parents
• Closely monitor children’s behavior, environment and exposure to violent media.
• Be mindful of your own reactions to traumatic events since they are often a predictor of
children’s reactions.
• If your child has been traumatized by violence, seek professional help immediately.
Professionals
• Address the challenges of identifying children and teens exposed to violence. Create uniform
identification and referral processes.
• Develop and implement intervention services that are age-appropriate, systematic and
sustained (as symptoms of trauma oscillate over time).
Schools
• Identify and refer children exposed to violence to mental health services, including group interventions.
• Create safer school environments. Help students feel connected and supported by the school
staff and their peers. Be careful not to create a climate of fear instead of a sense of security.

44

Children’s Defense Fund

Gun Deaths in the States
In 2010, children and teens died from guns all over the country. As would be expected, the largest
states had the highest share of gun deaths. Just over half of the 2,694 deaths of children and teens
from guns in 2010 were in nine states: California (361), Texas (202), Florida (147), Illinois (140),
Pennsylvania (132), New York (116), Georgia (112), Michigan (103), and Louisiana (87).
Due to small numbers of deaths in some states, CDF presents an analysis of state trends for the period
2000 to 2010. State-specific numbers of gun deaths for 2000-2010 are provided in the Appendix.

Children and teens die from gun violence in all states.
n

In the 11 years following the Columbine High School shooting, a total of 32,108 children
and teens were killed by guns across the United States. This is an average of 2,919 children
and teens, or 146 classrooms of 20 children each, dying every year for 11 years.

n

Every state lost children to gun violence between 2000 and 2010. The number of deaths
varied from 15 in Hawaii to 4,668 in California.

The risk of children and teens dying from guns varies widely from state to state.
n

The deadliest state was Alaska with 8.7 gun deaths for every 100,000 children and teens
each year, more than twice the nationwide rate of 3.6. Alaska was 21 times more deadly
for children and teens than the safest state, Hawaii.

Average Yearly Rate of Child and Teen Gun Deaths by State, 2000â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2010

(Bolded states are also among top ten for highest overall gun deaths for children and teens; bolded and italicized states are
among top ten highest overall and for homicides and suicides.)

46

Children’s Defense Fund

Saving Lives with Smarter Technology: Personalized Guns
Many gun tragedies could have been prevented by simple technologies that exist today. Personalized
gun technology encompasses a broad range of manufacturing designs that allow guns to recognize an
authorized user, and become inoperable when handled by anyone else. A current version can be seen
in the Armatix GmbH iP1 Pistol, which communicates with a connected wristwatch via microchips.
The watch’s owner enters a personal identification number to unlock the gun’s firing pin lock, and
the gun can only be operated when it is located within a certain distance of the watch. The New
Jersey Institute of Technology has been working on developing another form of personalized gun
technology, “grip recognition,” which would recognize the palm configuration of authorized users and
only operate for them.1
Research suggests that this technology would be extremely effective in preventing deaths of children
and teens. A study of unintentional gun deaths in Maryland and Milwaukee County, Wisconsin found
that 37 percent of the deaths would have been prevented with gun personalization technology.2 This
technology would make it harder for children to commit suicide with their parents’ guns, and would
render stolen guns inoperable.
New Jersey passed a model law in 2002 requiring that all new handguns sold in the state include
authorized user identification technology within three years of becoming available in the state and
being recognized by the attorney general as complying with the definition of a personalized or
childproof gun.3
At the national level, Representative John Tierney (D-MA) has taken steps to embrace the use of
technology in preventing gun violence by introducing the Personalized Handgun Safety Act of 2013,
which would:
• Authorize National Institute of Justice grants for further development and improvement of
personalized handgun technology.
• Direct the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to create a safety standard for
personalized handguns that all newly manufactured handguns would be required to meet.*
• Require that all U.S. manufactured handguns be personalized and comply with the CPSC
standard two years after the date of enactment.
• Require that any entity selling a handgun retrofit the gun with personalization technology
three years after the bill is enacted. The retrofitting process would be paid for by the
Department of Justice.
• Hold gun manufacturers liable if their weapons do not meet CPSC standards within two
years of the bill’s passage.

*If this bill were enacted this would be the first time that the CPSC would have the authority to develop safety standards related to
guns as the CPSC is currently prohibited from regulating guns.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

47

Steps by States to Protect Children Not Guns
Federal policies play a crucial role in protecting children from guns; however, state and local governments
can also take many actions to promote gun safety and reduce gun violence. Laws in place that reduce
child and teen gun injuries and fatalities include requiring locking devices, imposing criminal liability
on adults for leaving guns accessible to children and teens, instituting minimum age requirements,
requiring universal background checks for purchase and possession of guns, and limiting access to
assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines. According to a study published in the
Journal of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine, states with higher rates of gun ownership
and weak gun control laws have the highest rates of gun deaths.1 Below is a summary of state laws
that exceed minimal federal requirements to protect children and teens from gun violence.

Requirements for Locking Devices 2
Federal law only requires licensed importers, dealers or manufacturers to have a locking device on guns
they sell or transfer. These requirements do not apply to transfers by private sellers nor do they require
the person who obtains the gun to continue using the locking device.3
n

Eleven states and the District of Columbia have stepped up and passed laws requiring
gun-locking devices under certain circumstances. California, Massachusetts, and D.C. have
the most comprehensive requirements around locking devices. California requires locking
devices on all guns manufactured, sold, or transferred, while Massachusetts has the same
requirement for all handguns and assault weapons. Massachusetts and D.C. require that all
handguns be stored with a lock in place. The fact that only 11 states and D.C. require gun
locking devices to protect children from guns stands in stark contrast to state efforts to protect
children from other harms. All 50 states and D.C. have passed child safety seat laws;4 49
states and D.C. have passed seat belt violation laws; 48 states and D.C. have passed laws
enforcing a requirement for personal flotation devices for both recreational boats and personal
watercrafts for children;5 and 21 states and D.C. have passed laws requiring children to wear
bike helmets.6

Child Access Prevention Laws 7
Child access prevention laws permit criminal prosecution of adults if their gun is left unsecured and/or
a child uses that gun to harm themselves or others. There are no federal child access prevention laws.
n

Twenty-seven states have laws designed to prevent children from having access to guns
although they take effect at different ages* and often include a number of exceptions.
• The strongest laws impose criminal liability when a minor could or does gain access
to a negligently stored gun. Generally, these laws apply when a person “knows or
reasonably should know” that a minor is likely to gain access to the gun. Such laws
are found in 14 of the 27 states that have child access prevention laws and vary in
strength in their ability to protect children.
• The other 13 states with child access prevention laws impose a weaker standard
for criminal liability. Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi,
Missouri, Nevada, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin prohibit
persons from intentionally, knowingly, and/or recklessly providing a gun to a minor.

*States have different definitions of a minor, ranging from age 14 to under 18.

48

Children’s Defense Fund

Steps by States to Protect Children Not Guns
Criminal Liability for Gun Access by Minors
Six states impose criminal liability
for allowing a minor to gain access to a
gun regardless of whether the minor uses
it or causes any injury

Eight states impose criminal liability
only if the minor carries and/or uses
the gun

Hawaii
Maryland
Massachusetts

California
Connecticut
Florida
Illinois

Minnesota
New Jersey
Texas

Iowa
New Hampshire
North Carolina
Rhode Island

Among these 14 states, three (California*, Hawaii, Massachusetts) can criminally
prosecute someone for negligent storage of an unloaded gun. All other states require a
gun to be loaded for liability to attach.

*Only in the case of handguns when a child carries a loaded or unloaded handgun off premises.

Minimum Age Requirements to Purchase or Possess Guns 8
Federal law includes some restrictions on the purchase or possession of guns by children. Restrictions
vary by type of gun and whether or not the seller is a licensed dealer.
n

Handgun Sales. Federal law prohibits licensed dealers from selling handguns or ammunition
to anyone under 21. Private sellers are barred from selling handguns or handgun ammunition
to anyone under 18. No states have passed laws imposing stricter minimum age requirements
for handgun purchases. Note in the table on pages 52-53 that several states even appear to
violate federal law with provisions that set minimum age requirements for handgun sales
from licensed dealers to ages below 18, although federal law prevails in such cases.

n

Handgun Possession. Federal law makes it illegal for anyone under 18 to possess a handgun
or handgun ammunition.

n

Long Gun Sales. Federal law prohibits licensed gun dealers from selling a long gun or long
gun ammunition to anyone under 18. However, many of these guns change hands at largely
unregulated gun shows and other public markets dominated by private (unlicensed) sellers
who are not subject to the same restrictions as licensed dealers.

n

Long Gun Possession. There is no age restriction at the federal level for possession of long guns.

Absent tough federal restrictions, some states acted and passed laws imposing stricter regulations on
minimum age requirements for purchase or possession of certain guns.
n

Nine states and the District of Columbia make it illegal for anyone under age 21 to possess
a handgun. In New Mexico, the minimum age to possess a handgun is 19.
Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

49

Steps by States to Protect Children Not Guns
n

Eleven states and the District of Columbia have laws imposing a minimum age requirement
higher than the federal requirement for the purchase of all handguns and that applies to
both licensed and unlicensed sellers.

n

Twenty states and the District of Columbia impose a minimum age requirement for
possession of long guns, an area where federal law is completely silent.

Background Check Laws
The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, passed in 1993, requires federally-licensed firearms dealers
to perform background checks on individuals attempting to purchase a firearm to ensure that the person
is legally allowed to own such a weapon. However, the law does not require unlicensed, private sellers
to conduct such a check, allowing any individual to obtain weapons through private sellers, including
online and at gun shows, without completing a check. In April, a federal effort to expand background
checks to private sales online and at gun shows failedâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;however several states have stricter background
checks than federal law.
n

Eight states and the District of Columbia have passed universal background check laws for
some or all gun sales, closing the private sale loophole and ensuring that criminals and other
dangerous individuals are not easily able to access firearms.9 A recent study in the Journal
of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine found that states with background
checks on private sales had 16 percent lower firearm fatality rates.10

Assault Weapons and High-Capacity Magazine Limits
While definitions vary slightly, an assault weapon is typically considered a semi-automatic weapon that
can accept a detachable high-capacity magazine and has one or more features designed to be useful
in military combat. A high-capacity magazine is typically defined as one that can hold more than 10
rounds of ammunition, allowing shooters to fire multiple rounds without reloading. There was a federal
ban on the sale and manufacture of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines from 1994 to 2004;
however, Congress failed to renew the ban in 2004 and no new federal law regulating these weapons
has been passed. Since the law expired in 2004, assault weapons and high-capacity magazines have
been used in some of our nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s worst mass shootings, including the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007,
the Tucson shooting in 2011, the Aurora theater shooting in 2012, and most recently, the massacre
of 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in December 2012.

50

n

Seven states and the District of Columbia have passed state-level laws limiting the transfer
and/or possession of assault weapons. The strongest of these laws require that grandfathered
assault weapons, those possessed before the passage of a ban, be registered with the state
and prohibit future transfers.11

n

Eight states and the District of Columbia have state laws limiting the transfer and/or
possession of high-capacity ammunition magazines. The majority of these states define
high-capacity magazines as those containing more than 10 rounds of ammunition. New
Jersey and Colorado set the limit higher, at 15 rounds, and New York set its lower, at seven
rounds.12

Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

State Policy Hall of Shame
Louisiana passed an amendment to its constitution establishing the right to keep and bear arms as a
fundamental right and subjecting any gun regulation to the strictest possible scrutiny. The Louisiana
Constitution previously was explicit in stating that the right to keep and bear arms was not unlimited,
and that it could not prevent the passage of laws prohibiting concealed carry.1 This new language,
passed by the legislature and then as a ballot initiative in November 2012, places a great barrier before
any attempt to pass common sense gun regulation in the state. That same year New Orleans had the
shame of having the second highest homicide rate in the nation.2
Indiana allowed people to use deadly force to meet a perceived threat, with no duty to retreat. In March
2012, Indiana passed a “Stand Your Ground” law that states that people are justified in using force,
including deadly force, if they believe that they are protecting themselves from the imminent use of
unlawful force.3 It joined 25 other states that have already passed “Stand Your Ground” laws.4
Utah, Virginia, Kentucky, West Virginia, Oklahoma, and Mississippi loosened restrictions on the
concealed carry of firearms. In February 2012, Utah allowed even persons charged with violent crimes
to carry concealed weapons by eliminating a requirement that the State Bureau of Criminal Identification
suspend a concealed carry permit if the holder is charged with a crime of violence.6 Virginia prevented
local governments from making it more difficult to obtain concealed carry permits. It passed two laws
in March 2012 preventing them from requiring fingerprinting or requesting any information not requested
in state law as part of the concealed carry permit application process.7 In April 2012, Kentucky’s governor
signed legislation allowing individuals to carry a concealed weapon without a permit on their own property
or the property of named relatives, and allowing a business owner and employees to carry concealed
weapons without a permit on property leased or owned by the business.8 In March 2012, West Virginia
exempted concealed carry permit holders from having to undergo a background check to purchase a
firearm.9 In the spring of 2012, Oklahoma and Mississippi passed new laws allowing for concealed
carry reciprocity, that is enabling residents of other states who have concealed carry permits to carry
their concealed weapons in Oklahoma and Mississippi even if the requirement to obtain a permit in
these states are less strict.10
Arkansas, South Dakota, and Kansas allowed guns in schools in 2013. Arkansas passed legislation in
February 2013 allowing guns in places of worship,11 and in March allowing campus staff and faculty
to carry concealed weapons on university, college, and community college campuses.12 South Dakota
passed legislation in March establishing school sentinel programs to promote school safety. These
programs authorize school boards to create, establish, and supervise the arming of school employees,
security personnel, or volunteers to secure and defend the school.13 The Kansas legislature passed a
law in March authorizing employees to carry concealed weapons in schools with the permission of the
school.14
A town in Georgia mandated gun ownership for residents. In April 2013, the city council of Nelson,
Georgia voted unanimously to require that all heads of households own a gun and ammunition to provide
for and protect the safety, security and general welfare of the city and its inhabitants. The measure
does exempt those who object to firearms.15

Criminal
Definition of a
Liability for
Minor for
Minimum Age
Providing Gun
State CAP
for Handgun
to Minor
Laws
Purchases*

3
3

3

State Minimum Age Requirements

3
3

<18
<18
<16
<18

3
3
3
3
3

3
3
3
3

3
3
3

3
3
3
3
3
3

3

<16
<18
<16

18
18
18
21
21
21
21
18

21

21

21

<16
<18

18
18
21
21

21
21

<18
<18
<18

18
18

<14
<18
<14

<18
<16
<16

3

<18

3

3

<18
<16

3
3

<18
<17
<18

3

<14

3

<14

3

21

<18

18
21

3

3
3

21

21
18
21

3
3

3

Minimum Age
for Handgun
Possession**

18
21
18
18
18
21
21

21
19
21

21

18
16

11 States
and D.C.

14 States

18

13 States

Note: Blank spaces in chart indicate absence of any state legislation or regulation.
*These state laws apply to both licensed and unlicensed dealers. Federal law prohibits licensed dealers from selling handguns or
ammunition to anyone under 21. Unlicensed dealers are barred from selling handguns or handgun ammunition to anyone under 18.
**Federal law makes it illegal for anyone under 18 to possess a handgun or handgun ammunition.
***There is no federal minimum age for the possession or purchase of long guns.
(H) Only applies to handguns.

Organizations Working to Prevent Gun Violence
Americans for Responsible Solutions: Founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her
husband Mark Kelly, ARS is now a national organization of over 350,000 members advocating for
commonsense legislative solutions to prevent gun violence and protect responsible gun ownership.
http://americansforresponsiblesolutions.org
Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence: A national organization that seeks to create an America free from
gun violence, where all Americans are safe at home, at school, at work, and in their communities.
It works to pass and enforce sensible federal and state gun laws, regulations and public policies.
http://www.bradycampaign.org
Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence: A public interest law center dedicated to providing legal expertise in
support of gun violence prevention and the promotion of smart gun laws. They track gun laws at the state
and local levels and provide free legal assistance to advocates, community leaders, government officials and
law enforcement seeking legislative and regulatory solutions to gun violence.
http://smartgunlaws.org/
Mayors Against Illegal Guns: A coalition of more than 950 mayors from large and small cities across the
country, co-chaired by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York City and Mayor Thomas M. Menino of
Boston, with the goal of protecting their residents, especially children, from harm by stopping the threat of
illegal guns and preventing criminals from getting guns illegally.
http://www.mayorsagainstillegalguns.org/
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America: An organization of nearly 100 local chapters and over
100,000 members throughout the U.S. In addition to pushing for legislative action regarding common-sense
gun reforms Moms Demand Action sponsors a corporate responsibility campaign urging American consumers
to support companies that have â&#x20AC;&#x153;gun senseâ&#x20AC;? and put pressure on those that do not change their policies.
http://momsdemandaction.org/
National Law Enforcement Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence: A partnership of nearly 10 different law
enforcement agencies that work to prevent dangerous people from acquiring firearms, prevent weapons of
war from inflicting harm against citizens, and to allow states to decide who can lawfully carry concealed
firearms in their own states. http://lepartnership.org/
Newtown Action Alliance: An alliance that was founded by Newtown residents, and advocates for both
legislative and cultural changes that will reduce gun violence in the community, and has led several media
campaigns in support of proposed national gun safety legislation. http://www.newtownaction.org
Sandy Hook Promise: An initiative that strives to help those affected directly by the Sandy Hook shooting
and also facilitate straightforward dialogue among Newtown community members, state legislators, Congress,
and the public about creating meaningful change. http://www.sandyhookpromise.org/
States United to Prevent Gun Violence: An organization representing gun violence prevention groups in
26 states that is focused on reducing gun violence in states across the country. http://supgv.org
Violence Policy Center: A national organization working to stop gun deaths and injury though research,
advocacy, education, and collaboration, and which maintains a Concealed Carry Killers on-line resource that
tracks incidents involving private citizens legally allowed to carry concealed handguns. http://www.vpc.org

54

Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund

A Note About Data Sources
The data used in this report to describe gun deaths in U.S. children and teens are from death
certificate data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for
Health Statistics. Every death is included in the vital statistics system. Another source of data
for some gun deaths is law enforcement reports of murders. There is a national system that
collects these data—the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) system, but this system is not
complete. Not all law enforcement agencies participate in this system, and coverage varies from
year to year. Further, the UCR system covers only homicide deaths. A comparison of this system
with the vital statistics system shows that UCR includes between 75 and 80 percent of the
firearm homicides of children and teens. For this reason we do not use FBI UCR data to
describe child gun deaths.
Nonfatal injury data are from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS). These
data are collected by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and processed by the National
Center for Injury Prevention and Control of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The data are collected from a sample of emergency rooms representative of the nation as a
whole. National estimates are extrapolated from the data collected from this sample.
No state-level data are available through this system.
Data for other high-income nations were collected through the World Health Organization (WHO)
European Mortality Database, which aggregates vital statistics data from countries around the
world. Data for Canada was collected separately through Canada’s vital statistics system.
All gun death and injury data in this report exclude gun deaths resulting from legal (police and
corrections) intervention. When possible, data by race/ethnicity separate out children and teens
of Hispanic origin regardless of race from children and teens of other races.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

55

Appendix
Table 1: Gun Death Rates in the U.S. and 25 Other High-Income Countries ................ 57
Table 2: Gun Deaths of Children and Teens, by Age, Sex, Manner, and
Race/Ethnicity, 2010 ................................................................................. 58
Table 3: Gun Deaths per 100,000 Children and Teens, by Age, Sex, Manner and
Race/Ethnicity, 2010 ................................................................................. 59
Table 4: Numbers and Rates per 100,000 Gun Deaths of Children and Teens,
by Manner, 1963–2010 ............................................................................. 60
Table 5: Numbers and Rates per 100,000 Gun Deaths of Children and Teens,
by Race/Ethnicity, 1963–2010 ................................................................... 61
Table 6: Children and Teen Gun Deaths by State, 2000–2010 ................................... 62
Table 7: Gun Injury Numbers and Rates per 100,000, by Age and
Race/Ethnicity, 2001–2010........................................................................ 63
Table 8: Gun Injury Numbers and Rates per 100,000, by Manner and
Race/Ethnicity, 2001–2010........................................................................ 64
Table 9: Gun Injury Numbers and Rates per 100,000, by Age, 2001–2010 ................ 65

56

Children’s Defense Fund

Table 1: Gun Death Rates in the U.S. and
25 Other High-Income Countries
Total Gun
Death
Rate

Gun
Homicide
Death
Rate*

Gun
Suicide
Death
Rate

Non-Gun
Homicide
Death
Rate

Non-Gun
Suicide
Death
Rate

0.62

0.36

0.13

0.1

1.18

0.32

Non-U.S.***

0.053

0.025

0.014

0.006

0.272

0.195

U.S./Non-U.S. Ratio

11.75

14.5

9.7

15.75

4.35

1.6

U.S.

3.24

2.13

0.9

0.16

1.2

1.41

Non-U.S.***

0.19

0.07

0.09

0.016

0.35

1.35

U.S./Non-U.S. Ratio

17.0

32.2

9.95

10.05

3.5

1.0

10.15

3.59

6.28

0.2

1.6

5.91

1.36

0.21

1.01

0.04

0.65

10.36

7.5

17.3

6.2

4.8

2.5

0.6

Ages
U.S.
0-14

0-19

U.S.
All Ages

Non-U.S.***
U.S./Non-U.S. Ratio

Gun
Accident
Death
Rate**

All rates are unadjusted and per 100,000.
* Data not available for Iceland.
** Data not available for Austria, Hungary, Iceland, Luxembourg and Slovenia.
*** The non-U.S. rate was calculated by dividing all the deaths observed in the non-U.S. countries by the total population in the nonU.S. countries.
Source: World Health Organization. 2012. Inter-country Comparison of Mortality for Selected Cause of Death – Total Gun Death,
European Detailed Mortality Database (DMDB). Copenhagen: World Health Organisation Regional Office for Europe. Accessed January
18, 2013; data for Canada were collected separately through their individual country’s statistical databases; Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention. 2010. Fatal Injury Reports. Accessed using the Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System
(WISQRAS). Calculations by the Children’s Defense Fund.

* All race/ethnic groups are mutually exclusive. Those with nothing stated for Hispanic ethnicity were included in non-Hispanics.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death 1999-2010 on
CDC WONDER Online Database, released 2012, http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html. Calculations by the Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund.

* All race/ethnic groups are mutually exclusive. Those with nothing stated for Hispanic ethnicity were included in non-Hispanics.
Rates are unadjusted. Rates in italics are unreliable because based on fewer than 20 deaths.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death 1999-2010 on
CDC WONDER Online Database, released 2012, http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html. Calculations by the Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Defense Fund.

Protect Children, Not Guns 2013

59

Table 4: Numbers and Rates per 100,000 Gun Deaths of Children and Teens,
by Manner, 1963–2010

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Data for 1963-1967 are from annual Vital Statistics of the United
States reports, available at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/vsus.htm. Data for 1968-2010 are from Compressed Mortality Files 1968-1978, 1979-1998,
and 1999-2010, accessed through CDC WONDER Online Database at http://wonder.cdc.gov/mortSQL.html on Feb 13, 2013. Deaths for children and teens
include deaths in those aged 0 to 19, inclusive. Deaths include homicides, suicides, accidents and deaths of undertermined intent, but exclude deaths from
legal intervention. Deaths of unknown or undetermined intent not available as a separate category prior to 1968. Gun deaths from 1963-1978 include a very
small number of deaths from explosives (estimated to be fewer than 50 deaths.) Calculations by the Children’s Defense Fund.

* Data for American Indians/Alaska Natives and Asians/Pacific Islanders are not available prior to 1981, and for Hispanics prior to 1990. Starting in
1990 the numbers for Whites, Blacks, American Indians/Alaska Natives, and Asians/Pacific Islanders exclude Hispanics.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Data for 1963-1967 are from annual Vital Statistics of the United
States reports, available at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/vsus.htm. Data for 1968-1980 and for 1999-2010 are from Compressed Mortality Files 19681978, 1979-1998, and 1999-2010, accessed through CDC WONDER Online Database at http://wonder.cdc.gov/mortSQL.html. Data for 1981-1998 are from
Multiple Cause of Death files accessed through the Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) at
http://webappa.cdc.gov/sasweb/ncipc/mortrate9.html. Deaths for children and teens include deaths in those aged 0 to 19, inclusive. Deaths include homicides,
suicides, accidents and deaths of undertermined intent, but exclude deaths from legal intervention. Gun deaths from 1963-1978 include a very small number
of deaths from explosives (estimated to be fewer than 50 deaths.) Calculations by the Children’s Defense Fund.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death 1999-2010 on CDC WONDER Online
Database, released 2012. Accessed at http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html on Jan 7, 2013. Calculations by the Children's Defense Fund. Gun deaths
include deaths from homicide, suicide, accident and deaths where the type could not be determined, and exclude gun deaths due to legal intervention or
war. Rates are per 100,000 children and teens per year. Higher rank means a higher overall gun death rate. The District of Columbia is not included in the ranking.
* Denotes cases where the number of deaths was below 10 and the exact number was not released by the CDC to protect the anonymity of victims.
** Means that the rate is unreliable because it is based on fewer than 20 deaths.

62

Children’s Defense Fund

Table 7: Gun Injury Numbers and Rates per 100,000, by Age and
Race/Ethnicity, 2001–2010
Gun Injury Numbers and Rates by Age, 2001–2010
TOTAL
Number Rate

Under 5
Number Rate

Ages 5-9
Number Rate

Ages 10-14
Number Rate

Ages 15-19
Number
Rate

2001

14,496

17.9

112

0.6

381

1.9

1,889

9.0

12,113

59.2

2002

12,854

15.8

99

0.5

127

0.6

1,117

5.3

11,511

55.9

2003

11,883

14.6

95

0.5

102

0.5

794

3.7

10,893

52.4

2004

13,801

16.9

53

0.3

289

1.5

2,001

9.3

11,458

54.3

2005

16,082

19.6

200

1.0

68

0.4

1,395

6.6

14,419

67.1

2006

17,381

21.1

82

0.4

288

1.5

2,100

10.0

14,912

68.4

2007

17,523

21.2

71

0.4

265

1.3

1,516

7.3

15,671

71.0

2008

20,596

24.8

238

1.2

369

1.9

1,170

5.7

18,819

84.7

2009

13,790

16.6

149

0.7

91

0.5

618

3.0

12,932

58.3

2010

15,576

18.7

201

1.0

240

1.2

1,265

6.1

13,871

62.9

Gun Injury Numbers and Rates by Race/Ethnicity*, 2001–2010
TOTAL
Number Rate

Black
Number Rate

White
Number Rate

Hispanic
Number Rate

Other non-Hispnic
Number
Rate

2001

14,496

17.9

6,349

48.3

2,393

4.8

2,101

15.4

1,095

26.0

2002

12,854

15.8

6,205

47.0

2,023

4.1

2,252

16.0

194

4.5

2003

11,883

14.6

6,844

51.5

1,948

4.0

1,343

9.3

60

1.4

2004

13,801

16.9

6,693

50.1

3,130

6.4

1,576

10.5

634

14.1

2005

16,082

19.6

7,591

56.4

2,389

4.9

2,218

14.3

386

8.4

2006

17,381

21.1

8,922

65.8

2,926

6.1

2,664

16.7

775

16.5

2007

17,523

21.2

6,601

48.2

2,737

5.7

1,906

11.5

601

12.5

2008

20,596

24.8

8,441

61.2

4,086

8.6

5,099

29.9

579

11.8

2009

13,790

16.6

7,102

51.2

2,368

5.1

2,546

14.5

185

3.7

2010

15,576

18.7

7,232

52.1

2,839

6.1

3,571

20.0

349

6.9

* Race/ethnicity categories are mutually exclusive: White, non-Hispanic; Black (including Hispanic and non-Hispanic); Hispanic (for all
races other than Black); Other non-Hispanic, and Not Stated. The number of injuries among those who did not state a race/ethnicity
were: 2,588 in 2001, 2,180 in 2002, 1,688 in 2003, 1,768 in 2004, 3,497 in 2005, 2,093 in 2006, 2,391 in 2007, 5,679 in
2008, 1,588 in 2009, and 1,584 in 2010.
Note: Numbers may not add up to the totals due to rounding.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2001-2011. Nonfatal Injury Reports. Accessed using the Web-based Injury Statistics
Query and Reporting System (WISQARS). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/nonfatal.html. Calculations by the Children’s Defense Fund. Injuries from legal (police or corrections)
intervention are excluded.

*Race/ethnicity categories are mutually exclusive: White, non-Hispanic; Black (including Hispanic and non-Hispanic); Hispanic (for all races
other than Black); Other non-Hispanic, and Not Stated.
Note: Self-harm is defined as confirmed or suspected injury resulting from a deliberate violent act inflicted on oneself with the intent to take
one’s own life or with the intent to harm oneself. This category includes suicide attempts and other intentional self-harm. Assault injuries
exclude injuries from legal (police or corrections) intervention.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2001-2011. Nonfatal Injury Reports. Accessed using the Web-based Injury Statistics
Query and Reporting System (WISQARS). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/nonfatal.html.
Calculations by the Children’s Defense Fund. Assault injuries exclude injuries from legal (police or corrections) intervention.

Note: Numbers may not add up to the totals due to rounding.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2001-2011. Nonfatal Injury Reports. Accessed using the Web-based Injury Statistics
Query and Reporting System (WISQARS). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/nonfatal.html.
Calculations by the Children’s Defense Fund.

Grossman, David C., Donald T. Reay, and Stephanie A. Baker.
1999. “Self-inflicted and Unintentional Firearm Injuries Among
Children and Adolescents: The Source of the Firearm.” Archives of
Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine 153(8):875-8.
http://archpedi.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=347593
10

2011. “Point, Click, Fire: An Investigation of Illegal Online Gun
Sales.” The City of New York. http://www.nyc.gov/html/cjc/downloads/pdf/nyc_pointclickfire.pdf

18

Dimock, Michael, Carroll Doherty, and Leah Christian. 2013.
“Perspectives of Gun Owners, Non-Owners: Why Own a Gun?
Protection is Now Top Reason.” Pew Research Center for the People
& the Press. http://www.people-press.org/files/legacy-pdf/03-1213%20Gun%20Ownership%20Release.pdf
19

Dimock, Michael and Carrol Doherty. 2013. “Gun Rights
Proponents More Likely to Vote on Issue: Broad Support for
Renewed Background Checks Bill, Skepticism About
Its Chances.” Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.
http://www.people-press.org/files/legacy-pdf/5-2313%20Gun%20Policy%20Release.pdf

20

Pew Research Center. 2012. “After Newtown, Modest Change in
Opinion About Gun Control.” Pew Research Center for the People &
the Press. http://www.people-press.org/2012/12/20/after-newtownmodest-change-in-opinion-about-gun-control/1/

Stachelberg, Winnie, Arkadi Gerney, and Chelsea Parsons.
2013. “Blindfolded, and With One Hand Tied Behind the Back:
How the Gun Lobby Has Debilitated Federal Action on Firearms and
What President Obama Can Do About It.” Center for American
Progress. March 19. http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/report/2013/03/19/56928/blindfolded-and-with-one-hand-tiedbehind-the-back/

Pew Research Center. 2013. “Why Own a Gun? Protection is Now
Top Reason: Perspectives of Gun Owners, Non-Owners.” Pew
Research Center for the People & the Press. http://www.peoplepress.org/2013/03/12/section-3-gun-ownership-trends-and-demographics/
Gallup. 2012. “Guns,” personally own a gun.
http://www.gallup.com/poll/1645/Guns.aspx

Pew Research Center. 2013. “Broad Support for Renewed
Background Checks Bill, Skepticism About Its Chances:
Gun Rights Proponents More Likely to Vote on Issue.”
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press. http://www.peoplepress.org/2013/05/23/broad-support-for-renewed-backgroundchecks-bill-skepticism-about-its-chances/

2 Dimock, Michael, Carroll Doherty, and Leah Christian. 2013.
“Perspectives of Gun Owners, Non-Owners: Why Own a Gun?
Protection is Now Top Reason.” Pew Research Center for the People
& the Press. http://www.people-press.org/files/legacy-pdf/03-1213%20Gun%20Ownership%20Release.pdf

Dimock, Michael and Carrol Doherty. 2013. “Gun Rights
Proponents More Likely to Vote on Issue: Broad Support for
Renewed Background Checks Bill, Skepticism About Its Changes.”
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.
http://www.people-press.org/files/legacy-pdf/5-2313%20Gun%20Policy%20Release.pdf
4

Ibid.

5 2013. “Now is the Time: The President’s Plan to Protect Our Children
and Communities by Reducing Gun Violence.” The White House.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/wh_now_is_the_tim
e_full.pdf
6

Stachelberg, Winnie, Arkadi Gerney, and Chelsea Parsons. 2013.
“Blindfolded, and With One Hand Tied Behind the Back: How the
Gun Lobby Has Debilitated Federal Action on Firearms and What
President Obama Can Do About It.” Center for American Progress.
March 19. http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civilliberties/report/2013/03/19/56928/blindfolded-and-with-one-handtied-behind-the-back/

Child and Teen Gun Deaths
Gun deaths: Center for Disease Control and Prevention, National
Center for Health Statistics. 2012. Accessed using the WONDER
Online Database, http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html. All child
and teen data are for ages 0 -19. Calculations by the Children’s
Defense Fund.
1

Child and Teen Gun Injuries
Gun injuries: Center for Disease Control and Prevention. 2012.
“Nonfatal Injury Reports.” Accessed using the Web-based Injury
Statistics Query and Reporting Systems (WISQARS). Based on the
National Electronic Injury Surveillance System All Injury Program.
http://webappa.cdc.gov/sasweb/ncipc/nfirates2001.html. All child
and teen data are for ages 0 -19. Calculations by the Children’s
Defense Fund.

Pew Research Center. 2013. “Broad Support for Renewed
Background Checks Bill, Skepticism About Its Chances:
Gun Rights Proponents More Likely to Vote on Issue.” Pew Research
Center for the People & the Press. http://www.peoplepress.org/2013/05/23/broad-support-for-renewed-backgroundchecks-bill-skepticism-about-its-chances/

2013. “Community Gathering Around Family of 1-Year-Old Killed
in East Hills.” WPXI. May 23.
http://www.wpxi.com/news/news/local/1-year-old-boy-killed-2-womeninjured-east-hills/nXyxw/

9

Johnson, Renee M., Catherine Barber, Deborah Azrael, David E.
Clark, and David Hemenway. 2010. “Who Are the Owners of
Firearms Used in Adolescent Suicides?” Suicide and Life
Threatening Behavior 40(6):609-11.

10

10

11

Baxley, Frances and Matthew Miller. 2006. “Parental
Misconceptions About Children and Firearms.” Archives of Pediatrics
and Adolescent Medicine 160(5): 542-547.

Sources (Excerpted and Adapted From): Brady Campaign to Prevent
Gun Violence, Mass Shootings in the United States Since 2005
(accessed February 2012); Slate: How Many People Have Been
Killed by Guns Since Newtown?;
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/crime/2012/12/gun_
death_tally_every_american_gun_death_since_newtown_sandy_hook_
shooting.html, (accessed June 2013); Kid Shootings: 2012,
http://kidshootings.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2012-0101T00:00:00-08:00&updated-max=2013-01-01T00:00:0008:00&max-results=50 (assessed May 2012).

Daily Mail Reporter and Associated Press. 2012. “Boy, 12,
Played Dead Under Body of Dead Brother as Gunman Shot His
Family Before Committing Suicide in Front of Cops on
North Dakota Indian Reserve.” Daily Mail. November 20.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2236135/Murder-NorthDakota-Christian-Schuster-survived-playing-dead-brothers-body.html

18 Gurman, Sadie. 2013. “Details Emerge About Family
in Denver Shooting That Left 3 Dead.” Denver Post. February 7.
http://www.denverpost.com/commented/ci_22530628?source=commented-

Center for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for
Health Statistics. 2012. Accessed using the WONDER Online
Database, http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html. All child and teen
data are for ages 0 -19. Calculations by the Children’s Defense Fund.

Dreilinger, Danielle. 2013. “Mother’s Day Shooting Victim, 10,
Lost Cousin Briana Allen and Father to Violence.” The Times-Picayune.
May 14.
http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2013/05/mothers_day_shooting_victim_10.html